


Kaminari

by Anitzei_Pendragon



Series: Inazuma Eleven [1]
Category: Inazuma Eleven, Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin, Inazuma Eleven: Orion no Kokuin
Genre: Anna remembers, Asuto puts up with it, Atsuya hates Hiroto, Awkward Dates, Childhood Friends, Comfort Food, Comfort Reading, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Female Friendship, First Dates, Friendship, Girls Kissing, Guilt, Haizaki swears, Hate to Love, Headaches & Migraines, Hiroto hates Atsuya, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Kidou is done, Love at First Sight, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Mizukamiya has Two Moms, Multi, Neither does Tatsuya, Nishikage is the best, Nosaka is blind, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Painkillers, Painting, Sein hates them both, Shirou doesn't know, So do Hiroto and Atsuya, Supernatural Elements, They hate him too, but not really, he's awesome, weird body reactions to the hissatsu
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:40:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23547034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anitzei_Pendragon/pseuds/Anitzei_Pendragon
Summary: A spark ignites in her eyes as the new Raimon soccer team steps on the field. Yuuma doesn't miss it. Nishikage does. Lin's eyes go from clear teal to an electric blue in a split second. He doesn't point it out, he has no reason to. A small part of him enjoys it. Because he himself is also a bit excited for this match.~~~~"Mikado Anna," her voice is even. "My name is Mikado Anna."
Relationships: Endou Mamoru/Gouenji Shuuya, Endou Mamoru/Gouenji Shuuya/Kidou Yuuto, Endou Mamoru/Kidou Yuuto, Fudou Akio & Genda Koujirou, Fudou Akio & Original Character(s), Fudou Akio/Sakuma Jirou, Genda Koujirou/Original Female Character, Gouenji Shuuya/Kidou Yuuto, Haizaki Ryouhei & Kira Hiroto, Haizaki Ryouhei & Mizukamiya Seiryuu, Haizaki Ryouhei & Original Character(s), Haizaki Ryouhei/Inamori Asuto, Haizaki Ryouhei/Inamori Asuto/Nosaka Yuuma, Haizaki Ryouhei/Nosaka Yuuma, Hiura Kirina & Inamori Asuto & Mansaku Yuuichirou, Hiura Kirina/Nishikage Seiya, Inamori Asuto/Nosaka Yuuma, Mikado Anna & Original Character(s), Nishikage Seiya & Nosaka Yuuma, Nosaka Yuuma & Original Character(s), Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, Sakuma Jirou & Original Character(s)
Series: Inazuma Eleven [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1694641
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7





	1. Prologue: Lin Kurger

**Author's Note:**

> This is the remake of Goddess of Lightning, which I took down yesterday.  
> Hope you enjoy!

_< Where am I?>_

_"Se-" she gets interrupted by a coughing fit. It comes from her._

_Her voice feels rough. It hurt when she opened her mouth. Her legs feel numb, and somehow she's not sure where she is. Her eyes won't open and there's something dripping on her face. <What the fuck was I doing?>_

_"An...na...cha," her voice is broken, hollowed._

_There's no rumble inside her soul, no crackle of thunder to reassure her she's going to be fine. Only silence. She can't feel anything from the waist down, can barely feel anything from the waist up. There's still something dripping down her face, if not for her stubbornness, she wouldn't have been able to open her eyes._

_The thing dripping down her face is blood. From where you might ask? Her legs, which are somehow above her. She's upside down. <Just fucking amazing...> because sarcasm always helps. Her vision's spotty, and she can't make out much. _

_She blinks, in an attempt to clear her vision. Lina's eyesight doesn't get better, on the contrary, it darkens. <Is this it...?>_

_"Fuck..."_

_Then everything goes black, and she feels cold, numb and weak. <I'm sorry, Koujirou, Nii-chan, Sein, Anna-chan... Everyone, I'm sorry.>_

~<>~

Arashi almost throws her phone at the wall after closing it. Not only are some of her best friends dead, but her niece and godson are in the hospital. Sakuma Arashi isn't a woman to be easily angered, that is a fact. She almost snaps at the person that gently lays their palm on her should, but she doesn't. No matter the circumstances, she refuses to hurt this person that she treasures. 

"Who was it, Arashi?" The person's voice coaxes her gently, turning her around. "Did something happen?"

The Sakuma woman would have just pushed whoever it is aside. But not her, never Mitsuko. Arashi just can't. And the other woman's warm hand caresses her cold cheek, and Arashi hadn't even noticed she is crying.

"What happened?" Mitsuko's warm voice is as kind as the look in her multicolored eyes. "You can tell me."

"Taiyou and Lina are in the hospital," Arashi begins, her voice cracking. "Mirai and Ryuuji are dead."

"What...?"

Both women swirl around in surprise. Had she been so distraught as to not notice the nephew of said people approach? Not that it's that surprising, the little panther is far more subtle. Koujirou looks like his world came crashing down on him. Arashi gently kneels in front of the frightened boy, she does slowly. The last thing she wants is for Koujirou to turn into a full-cornered-predator right now.

"Yes," her tone is calm, unlike her conflicted feelings. "All of us are going to the hospital."

Arashi speaks slowly, not hurrying. She had sensed Mitsuko going to call both Ryouhei and Jirou. The only thing she needs to worry right now about is Koujirou. She's about to get up when he reaches a fist for a sleeve.

"Are Lin and Taiyou okay?" His voice is meek, head bowed.

Arashi gently - very unlike her normal self - gets up. Koujirou looks at her in suspicion as she holds out a hand for him to grasp. "That's what we're going to check."

Whatever she was expecting the lion-haired boy to say isn't what comes out of his mouth. "Taiyou has to be fine, Lin has to too."

The woman humphs, her lips twitching to stretch into a smirk. "Yeah, they do, don't they?"

Koujirou nods. Arashi huffs while ruffling his 'mane'. The boy looks like he's going to bend reality to make sure that both Lin and Taiyou are going to be fine. 

When Mitsuko returns with Jirou and Ryouhei, the grey-haired boy looks like he wants to say something. He doesn't and Arashi gets slightly worried before Mitsuko gently squeezes her shoulder. Jirou, on the other hand, looks pale, which isn't that abnormal because he is allergic to cherry blossoms. But he also looks like he ate a vanilla stick and not even Mitsuko's hand on her shoulder can stop her from worrying.

Jirou looks shattered, more than Koujirou had. [Fear] is a powerful thing, [guilt] even more so. Arashi isn't sure what happened, but she knows that her - idiot of a - son did something he's regretting right now.

~<>~

The thing that wakes Lina up is the constant beeping. After that, she notices a couple of things that baffle her. One, she is pretty Goddamn sure she _died_. Two, she's obviously no longer dead. Three, she can feel her body. Four, it's not cold, just numb. Five, she now remembers that she was in a car with Anna-chan and Sein. Six, she's pretty sure they crashed.

Back to thing #4, it's not the same feeling as when she could barely feel anything. Nope, it's more of the relaxed muscle that comes from painkillers. Painkillers usually mean hospitals. <God, I hate hospitals.> Lina would sigh if she could open her mouth. Thanks to the painkiller she used during her life - or is it past life? - she built a resistance to any form of painkillers that weren't as potent as the ones her mother made for her. The only thing she can hear is the - what she assumes to be - heart monitor, and the distant chatter of doctors and nurses.

Now onto thing five, they were going to the FFI finals on Liocott Island. It was Terumi-chan's Fire Dragon against Luca's Orpheus. Lina was going to cheer for both teams. Sein was going because Liocott is his home, so he would have liked to see the match. Anna-chan was going because Lina dragged her.

It's not long before she can move her finger, but that's the most she can do. Lina mentally sighs again, and proceeds to start counting seconds as they pass. In the past, when she had nothing better to do, this started. She'd just tap her finger on something, be it a desk her knee or any flat surface. Unfortunately, while her mind works Lina doesn't open her eyes. On painkillers, she learned, it sucks to open your eyes.

Lina reaches ten-thousand eight-hundred before the effects start to fade. Three fucking hours of tapping her middle finger on the hospital bed with the annoying beeping of the heart monitor. The sound of her heartbeat is annoying, but now she can feel it. Lina no longer feels like she's going insane.

The lightning in her veins and the thunder in her heart. They're comforting now, and she's surprised to find how long it took for her numbness to fade. It usually takes no more than half an hour for the painkillers to fade.

When she can feel them, Lina slowly forces her eyes to open. <Fuck!> she squeezes them shut though to the brightness. <Fucking hospital lights!> she mentally rages. She tries again, more cautious. She still ends up closing both of them immediately.

She blinks a multitude of times before her eyesight finally adjusts to the bright lights above her. Lina is anything if not reckless and getting blinded for a week thanks to a flashlight also counts as stupid.

Her teeth grit as she tries to move, now that the painkillers have faded. She manages to get into a sitting position. On the other hand, she can now reach for the glass of water that it's beside the bed. Because Lina's throat hasn't felt this sore and dry since she decided walk that desert with Hide all those years ago.

While drinking she takes note of her tiny hands. They're frail, bony and somehow pale. Now that she could feel her body, Lina sighs at how weak it is.

She comes up with two probable reasons: one, she was in a car crash and two, she appears to be ten.

Lina feels like gritting her teeth, but the action seems to tiring. She's seen more than a couple of strange things in her life. <But who the Hell signed me up for time travel or some kind of parallel universe crossing bullshit?!>

Still, the water's cold against her burning throat. It makes her think of a certain striker/defender. Shirou-chan's body temperature isn't normal, being closer to that of snowman than that of a human.

If she really is in another world, then finding ou how it's different would be the best course of action. Thankfully on the other wall of the room is an opened bag.

Hopefully it has a telephone in it. Lina gets up cautiously, not sure if her legs work properly. Thankfully they do and she unhooks herself from the heart monitor.

Lina's still shaky when she opens the bag, and her eyes sparkle. Because there's a laptop in the bag. <Far better than a telephone> she mentally cheers.

She can still hack, which is good. The laptop isn't that well secured so it just makes it easier for her to hack it.

\- Son of the Kira Company president almost killed in car crash - is the first article she opens.

The word ‘almost’ stops her heart. On the front page of the article is the photo of a grey-haired boy with another boy that Lina identifies as ‘Kiyama Hiroto’; or to be more exact a tiny version of Hiroto that is ‘Tatsuya’.

<Hiro-chan's alive here?> is the first thing that pops into her mind after reading all of the article.

Lina isn't sure what makes her open another article. Probably because she doesn't know what happens to Atsuya in this world.

\- Parents killed in an avalanche in Hokkaido, young boys orphaned -

Two important events don't happen. Because Hiro-chan is alive and so is Atsuya.

<Does that mean Hiroto and the others don't get adopted by Kira-san? How will Shirou-chan be without a second personality? More like post-Genesis match? Or like before that?>

Too many questions she doesn't have the answer to. And the only thing Lina Kruger knows is that she is fucked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First chapter XD  
> I changed Rin's name to Lina, most characters still call her Rin though to the pronunciation difference. Those who know how to pronounce it are: Haizaki, Nosaka, Nishikage, Sakuma, Kidou, Genda, Aphrodi, Mizukamiya, Anna and Asuto (who asks her). Most characters that know how to pronounce it just call her Lin.  
> Anyway, Arashi is Sakuma's mother and Lin's aunt while Mitsuko is Haizaki's mom, from canon.


	2. Prologue: Genda Koujirou

He met Lin when he came over to the Sakumas one day. He was eight and he remembers thinking Lin's a boy. He was embarrassed when Jirou told him that Lin is a girl. Apparently, Lin Kruger was Arashi-san niece, which explains why Lin looks like a little copy of Arashi-san. Jirou doesn't look like them, he is also more outgoing than both of them.

Koujirou finds that Lin likes soccer. And that she's pretty good at it. While Lin doesn't socialize much, he's seen her be pretty happy whenever the Sakumas come back from vacations. Her eyes sparkle whenever she kicks the ball.

He notices that there are differences between Arashi-san's overall appearance and Lin's. Arashi-san's hair is darker while Lin's reminds him of Okinawa's beaches. The young girl's eyes are a purer shade of teal. She's less confident than the Sakuma woman.

Over the years, he notices that she dribbles and shoots with both her legs. She writes with her left hand but does almost everything else with her right. Just like Sakura-san - Lin's mother - and Jirou, she is allergic to cherry blossoms. She is allergic to dogs, street and house cats, but not to wolves or big felines. Lin doesn't like sitting in the dark for too long.

She likes thunderstorms and runs in them. Koujirou's surprised that she never gets sick from it. Lin curses sometimes. She's more levelheaded than Jirou but more violent. Koujirou asked if she wanted to go to a party, she tells him to go f*** himself before she slams his head against a wall.

When Koujirou asks Lin her favorite animal, she looks at him like he just asked her the stupidest question that she's ever heard. And he's pretty sure Jirou asked her if she's adopted. After a moment's thought, he realizes that it might be the most idiotic thing he's said. Because Lin was oh-so lovingly petting a black jaguar, the large feline on top of her and licking her face.

When his cousin is born, he's about ten, give or take. His mother brings home two tiny cubs. She doesn't tell him what they are. He has no idea what he's supposed to do with them, so he keeps them in his mother's home office. He feeds them but doesn't name them. Naming them would just make it harder to let them go with they grow up.

The first time after Taiyou's birth that Arashi-san visits with Jirou and Lin, it's shocking. Koujirou remembers just how his cousin seemed to hate everyone. Because Taiyou finds Lin and refuses to let go of her. 'He likes her,' Arashi-san comments. Not that Lin seems to mind the little ball of sunshine - now that can be said without sarcasm, because she smiles at him and Koujirou's heart skips a beat.

For a moment Koujirou thinks he's sick. But then Lin finds the two cubs and her eyes sparkle in a way he's never seen before. Because they're electric, and full of innocent wonder. Lin exclaims something in English - he should really start learning English - and Taiyou makes some happy sounds. His cousin seems to enjoy her happiness. He feels like sinking and falling at the same time, he has no idea in what.

He starts calling her 'Tsuki'. Because Lin shines the brightest when she's around Taiyou. The moon cannot shine without the sun. Lin doesn't mind it, much. She calls him something in English, at first he thinks it means something like idiot, moron or stupid. Arashi-san tells him it means jaguar.

~<>~

That morning, he feels like something bad was going to happen. Unsurprisingly, it does. Arashi-san always says to trust your instincts before your head. The human brain grows accustomed to peace, your instincts are always animal. 

But what he doesn't expect is to find out that Lin ended up in the hospital. Nor the car crash that took his aunt and uncle, let alone that Taiyou would be in the hospital along with Lin. He's glad that Taiyou is alive. But he feels like ripping the doctors' and the nurses' heads off.

Because they call Arashi-san four hours after the crash. Koujirou knows Lin and Taiyou are alright, mostly because the thing inside of him is silent. It that roar earlier, twice. He guesses it roar in mourning for his aunt and uncle.

Mitsuko-san comes back with Jirou and Ryouhei. The Haizaki looks like he's going to be sick during the ride, Koujirou feels dizzy, Jirou seems like he might faint. Arashi-san and Mitsuko-san don't need that right now. Ryouhei is curled in a ball and pressed into his side while Jirou clings to his other. Koujirou wonders if _they_ are going to be alright.

When they get to the hospital, the doctor says that Lin might have some form of mild amnesia or general abnormal behavior. Mitsuko-san thanks - but it's strained - and drags Arashi-san along with her. Ryouhei glowers at that doctor while Jirou just looks like he might throw up now.

When they enter Lin's room, the sandy-haired girl is working on a laptop that Koujirou recognizes as his aunt's. She doesn't seem to have looked au when they walk in, or so he thinks. Lin's hair covers her face, creating a thin veil. Koujirou's unsettled when the thing in him growls at Lin. 

"How long ago was the crash?" 

They're all startled, but Lin's question is directed at the doctor behind them. "U-u-um, four hours ago," he stutters.

Lin hums while shutting the laptop. "Jirou, Aunty, Mitsuko-san, Ryouhei, Kou-chan," she greets them with a smile. 

If the question earlier startled them, then now they are in shock. Lin rarely addresses Jirou respectfully, calling him 'idiot' in English. As for him, always 'Genda-kun' Ryouhei is always 'Ryo-chan'. Koujirou's eyes narrow in suspicion, <is this really Tsuki?> this person seems different.

Arashi-san excuses herself to go check on Taiyou too. Koujirou wonders if it has anything to do with the fact that the blonde woman isn't really good at emotions. Or comforting people. Thankfully, Mitsuko-san is.

"Hey, sweety," the woman smiles, walking over to the bed and sitting beside her. "What were you looking at?"

Ryouhei is the first to move, a hand reaching for Lin's. Koujirou doesn't sit, Jirou gets on Lin's other side. He's pretty certain that she isn't the same person anymore. Because this Lin grabs Ryouhei's hand and rubs comforting circles on the back of it. Jirou looks lost and Koujirou's not sure how the car crash changed her.

Lin shrugs, closing her eyes. "Nothing of much importance," her tone is too nonchalant for that to be true. "Can we go to Ohisama En after I'm discharged? I want to see Hiro-chan."

Koujirou grits his teeth before walking out of the room. Because the thing inside of him growls possessively. It rattles its cage in frustration and he needs to get out of there before he does something he might regret. It's suffocating, to have some you love and that someone to ignore you in favor of another. Koujirou knows he is jealous.

But that doesn't calm his hatred of Kira Hiroto. Because in his eyes, Kira steals Lin too often. And Lin allows him to, because he plays soccer with her at a pace that neither he nor Jirou can keep up with. And he makes her smile and laugh. So, yeah Koujirou hates Kira Hiroto with a passion.

He mostly hates him for making Lin smile oh-so lovingly at him. The same way she smiles at Taiyou or Sora and Shiro. But that's fine, because he's the coward. Koujirou can't help but hate himself because he can't man up and tell Lin that he likes her.

Still, they're kids, so those kinds of feelings fade. But, he knows that he's lying to himself. _It_ loves Lin, and he is one with _it_. Those feelings aren't going to change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Koujirou's jealous of Hiroto. Also, Lina is in the Ares no Tenbin project. She has no idea. Hope you enjoyed this chapter ;)


	3. Departure to Tomorrow

If there's one thing Lina learned since coming back to Japan is that this country isn't the same one that she left. One, because it wasn't attacked by Aliea Gakuen. Probably for other reasons, but case-point Mamoru-chan's Inazuma Eleven won the Football Frontier last year. But lost in a practice match against Spain's Youth League champions, Barcelona Orb.

Another thing Lina's learned is that there are people that talk more than her brother's best friend/boyfriend. Nosaka Yuuma is one of them and Lina can't tone out his voice so she simply heaves a sigh. The tall boy chatters about anything and everything under the fucking sun. Not even an over-happy Dylan can talk this much, mostly because he starts coughing after he talks after too long.

By this point, Lina is sulking while eating her strawberry ice-cream. She is not longer sure if he's talking about watermelon or the biology of it anymore. The Outei Tsukinomiya captain has an obsession with watermelon; she feels worried because he's almost as obsessed with it as she is with ice-cream. And she got a mini freezer from Yuuto on her birthday, which was filled with ice-cream.

Lina raises a brow before getting up from the park bench they were sitting on. Standing there to listen to Yuuma's chatter without ice-cream would be torture. "You coming, Yuuma?"

She only asks because she isn't sure if the Nosaka had noticed her getting up. Yuuma smiles her, and Lina can tell it's all smoke and mirrors. Still, she lets him pull her along to some ice-cream stand that Lina's never tried before. She humphs, knowing that he hasn't either and crosses her arms. The lightning in her veins crackles, and she feels like snapping at him for smiling so fakely.

Lina enjoys the lightning. [Containment] of one's true energy means random bursts of it, thankfully soccer helps. Running and dribbling helps. There's little that does. She wonders if this is how Kaze-chan always feels.

"Lin-chan," she hums while paying for their new ice-creams, she's a bit tempted to not answer him.

She does so anyway, because Yuuma tends to worry about stupid things. "Yes?"

The boy doesn't answer right away instead, he just licks his ice-cream. For a moment Lina wonders if she took too long to answer. "Would you like to join Nishikage and I to a match tomorrow?"

"Which one?" Lina asks, teal eyes slightly narrowing. "I have one I'm supposed to go to."

"Seishou Gakuen vs Raimon Jr. High, correct?" Yuuma's knowing look rubs her the wrong way.

Lina doesn't answer and just stares at him while eating her ice-cream. It's her four one today, and it's not even that cold! Still, Yuuma innocently tilts his head and Lina feels like she's staring at Sora. She cringes, she has no idea how to deal with this kind of crap. Usually, when Sora gives her those eyes she does whatever he wants, not without the demon or Jirou scoffing. So, she sighs and nods.

When she looks up, Yuuma's lips curve upward in a self-indulging smile. His usually blank eyes have a glint of satisfaction in them. <This little fuck...!>

A vein throbs on her forehead. "You did that on purpose, you little shit," she accuses him spitefully.

He smiles, and it would have looked innocent if not for the devilish glint in his eyes. "I have no idea what you mean, Lin-chan."

~<>~

Yuuma realizes that the moment Raimon's #10 steps on the field that something interesting is going to happen. Not only that, but something in Lin-chan changes when all of Raimon is on the field. If Yuuma didn't know any better he'd think this is the first match she 'watches' rather than plays. But... Yuuma tilts his head realizing that this might be the first match she sees live.

To be honest, they passed Raimon's team on the way to their seats. Yuuma could have tasted the positive energy around the dark-grey-haired boy. For a moment, he wonders how Lin-chan sees him, what with being able to see auras and not being able to switch off her tactical mind.

Yuuma's more curious about the match now. He knows Lin-chan only came here because Haizaki-kun is playing. Maybe also because he heard her on the phone with Seishou's captain. As for why he's here, Haizaki-kun's playing. Also, maybe, perhaps, because he took a little too much interest in Raimon's #10.

Yuuma knows that Lin-chan's true aura only comes out when she plays. He didn't take into consideration that watching a live match would get the same reaction out of her. It spikes, and it's wild. Yuuma thinks that he might have seen the pitch as Lin-chan does. Close to the skin, like some type of protective armor, different colors surrounded every player. Some were dim, others almost unbearably bright while some were just plain dark. The concentration also differed from person to person.

He glances at Lin-chan in intrigue. A spark dances in her eyes as they jump from player to player, analyzing each and every one of them. Electricity seems to pulse in her body, more than the usual contained amount. Her skin - which is almost unhealthily pale - looks plainly fair too. Yuuma doesn't miss the less obvious detail, maybe because he's sitting beside her. He knows Nishikage does, sitting behind them. 

He finds this tiny detail far more interesting. Because Lin-chan's teal eyes turn to a more electric blue. They're sparkling with something that makes his insides turn, and not in a good way.

He's a little disappointed when the air around her calm, which happens pretty quickly. Yuuma doesn't bring it up, while he might talk a lot, he does like Lin-chan's company. Pointing it out when the sandy-haired girl is obviously uncomfortable with it would mean the end of their 'friendship'. He doesn't want her to pull away, not after she dragged him into playing soccer. Of course, he would have done it anyway, Lin-chan just sped up the process.

There's also the fact that Yuuma didn't mind it. The feeling of electricity in the air, crackling wildly. He's not entirely sure what brought him to Lin-chan in the first place. Yuuma knows why he stays though. Because around her, with the constant hum of energy. It calms his headaches and makes him feel lighter. He feels somewhat guilty for enjoying it, he isn't supposed to feel. Yuuma doesn't speak, he just keeps quiet. 

He glances at Nishikage, whose eyes are focused on the pitch. Yuuma wonders if he has also found something interesting in Raimon.

The commentator starts talking as the players get in their respective positions. "So, here we have Raimon and Seishou's starting members. They’re lined up on the field. Raimon's team is completely new compared to last year! What kind of play will they show us today! On the opposing team is the star of this tournament, Seishou Gakuen!

"Defeating Teikoku in a practice match and rising in the race for a high rank, they're here to take the title of being number one!"

Raimon starts the match after the whistle blows. Yuuma watches as Raimon's #9 dribbles - if not a bit clumsily - pass Seishou Gakuen's offense. He passes to #10, who receives it gracefully. It's not long before he comes face-to-face with Seishou's captain and another defender. #10 makes a feint before passing over to #11.

"Eh?"

A startled sound escapes Lin-chan's lips. Yuuma hums because not even he could have predicted what Raimon's #11 was about to do.

~<>~

Lina might have had a tiny heart attack just now. Because she thinks - for a split second - that she might be hallucinating. She isn't. A startled sound flies past her lips, and she knows that Yuuma heard. Lina feels Nishikage-san's gaze on her back for a second before it's gone. Not that she would have looked at him anyway because her eyes are fixed on the match.

Raimon's little forward, #11, kick the ball far over his head. Lina's eyes go wide in some form of excitement as he jumps and spins mid-air. From left to right, his lower half getting surrounded by a firey vortex while the ball floats near him. As Kozoumaru's jump reaches its limit, his body already in a horizontal position. Flames gather around his left foot, when it touches the ball it sets it ablaze while kicking it towards the goal. The ball gets followed by that stream of fire that somehow feels like home.

Lina is expecting it, like a moving going on rewind. Because the scene repeats itself, slowing down and showing the movement. From the speed of the rotation to the height of the jump to the strength of the kick. Numbers fade as it turns into the hissatsu technique’s energy.

Her eyes project a shadowy version of Shuuya-chan as he uses Fire Tornado in her brain. It’s weaker than Shuuya-chan's was in the practice match against Teikoku all those years back; yet still about a year in this world. Lina is a bit impressed by it though; not many people can full of Fire Tornado like that.

Maybe it's her sharp eyes, but Lina sees the demon's eyes widen as the shot flies past him into the goal. The score changes to 1-0 for Raimon after that. Then, the surprised look on his face shifts into something more familiar. It's a look that she has seen before a couple of times. That 'I can finally see the light' that Yuuto had after the official match against Raimon, the same one Hiroto - no, Lina corrects herself, Tatsuya - had after Genesis match against Raimon.

Now that she thought about it, didn't Terumi also have that look on his face after the match with Zeus? Probably, Lina can't really remember that, she was celebrating because one, the won the Football Frontier! And two, because they were alive!

Lina watches in silence and a bit of worry as the grey-haired demon throws his hands in the air and his head over his shoulders to talk to the sky. "I might've finally found it. That thing you call 'light', Kidou."

She doesn't hear him, more so reads him. Most of the time, everything is just background noise so she has learned to read lips, sign language. She's also learned them for Aki-chan, whose hearing had been a bit too sensitive. Still, Lina worries as the demon stats laughing maniacally; not for him, but for Raimon. Ryouhei has started reminding her of Atsuya since she got back.

"Their eyes," Yuuma breaks the silence between them.

She looks at him and knows Nishikage-san is doing the same. Yuuma's eyes are somewhat clouded, thoughtfully analyzing all the players on the pitch. Lina isn't sure what he means by that, their eyes look normal

"What about it?" Nishikage-san asks, just as confused as she feels about what can be so interesting about their eyes.

"Playing soccer..." Yuuma pauses. "They find it fun."

Lina knows that for Yuuma, soccer and 'fun' are totally different subjects that have nothing to do with one another. Not for the first time on this specific topic, Lina shuts up. She doesn't want to blow up on the poor guy for the way he was taught while growing up.

"That can't be the case," Nishikage-san immediately denies, after all his views aren't that different from Yuuma's.

"Right?" The captain enquires, but neither answers.

Lina wisely decides to keep her mouth shut. She's got a bad feeling about what might happen. That only intensifies as soon as the demon gets possession of the ball. Eyes focused, Lina reads his lips. And for a while, she wishes she hadn't. Because she's heard those words before in a similar circumstance and that didn't end very well for Raimon.

– Death Zone, initiated. –

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to make something clear: Lina was in the Ares no Tenbin, but she left Japan to study in Russia for two years before this chapter. So when she was about twelve.  
> She is in Outei Tsukinomiya in this chapter, and the manager of the main team. That's the reason she knows Nosaka and Nishikage.  
> Also, thank you for reading this :)


	4. The Devil of the Field

Truth be told, Yuuma isn't really surprised when the storm comes back. Because Lin-chan had been tense ever since Haizaki-kun got the ball. This time it's stronger and he knows Nishikage is tense behind him.

Yuuma glances at her in curiosity. Lin-chan has more than a couple of nervous habits, but he's never seen so many of them at the same time. Right leg bouncing up and down while her left tapped. <How in the...?> Right hand tapping on her bouncing knee while her hand's thumb got aggressively chewed on. Yuuma though can't figure out what got her so worked up.

Lin-chan doesn't even glance at him when he pokes her in the shoulder. Instead continues to watch what he assumes to be Haizaki-kun and his teammates. Now the saying goes that curiosity killed the cat, and Yuuma is very curious. He gently presses two fingers against the vein on her throat. Unlike usual where Lin-chan would remove his hand and pet his head she doesn't even look at him.

While Yuuma logically knows that Lin-chan's heartbeat is abnormally strong, he just doesn't expect the soft contact the shoot an electric thrill up his spine. Her heart also beats at an unnaturally fast pace, which is slightly worrying.

While he thinks, Yuuma doesn't notice everything fading around him. He does after a loud booming noise, and he isn't in the stadium anymore. He isn't sure where he is. It looks like a forest, just that there seem to be no creatures out. Just the howl of the wind the cracks of thunder and the flashes of lightning. There are fainter sounds, the rustling of leaves and distant rumbles.

There's cold rain hitting his face and the strong wind blowing his hair, almost pushing him back. Yuuma thinks that he might have made eye-contact with a pair of magenta ones. No pupils or irises or even the white of the eyes, just an endless abyss of purplish-red.

A hand gently prays Yuuma's away, and he's back in the stadium. The image fades immediately and he's staring in Lin-chan's concerned teal eyes. When Yuuma glances away from her eyes, he sees that Seishou's combination hissatsu blasting in Raimon's goal.

"Nosaka-san?" 

Yuuma hadn't even noticed Nishikage's hand on his shoulder. "I am quite alright," he assures. "I just spaced out for a second."

Neither look convinced, but he ignores them and turns back to the match. If they don't believe him, they don't believe him and that's that. Yuuma watches, chin on the back of his hand, as Haizaki-kun smirks victoriously. <As if a goal would be able to break them> Yuuma is startled by his own thought. Still, Haizaki-kun's smirk is a bit on the insane side and it somehow makes his character more interesting to watch. While Seishou Gakuen scores goal after goal, Raimon seems to get more and more discouraged.

From a tactical standpoint, Yuuma knows that in terms of power and speed, Raimon is far behind Seishou. From a personal point - which he really didn't know he still has - he feels like with a bit more training and experience, Raimon could win. Still, that doesn't change the fact that Seishou is unreachable for them right now.

Raimon's #10 tries to lift everyone's spirits. Yuuma knows it doesn't work. The first half ends with 4-1 in Seishou Gakuen's favor. <As expected> a part of him bitterly laughs. The second half ends after Haizaki-kun uses his hissatsu technique - Overhead Penguin - to score Seishou's tenth goal.

"The result was as expected," Nishikage comments after the final whistle.

Yuuma hums in a thoughtful way while Lin-chan gets up, dusting herself. "I'm going on ahead," she clarifies in an off-handed manner.

The captain doesn't question it, he doesn't feel the need to; he turns to Nishikage. "That's true, but..." He makes a pause to think about his next words. "Nishikage, can you look into that Raimon a bit for me?"

Outei Tsukinomiya's goalkeeper easily agrees, as he always does. "Understood," his gaze though, doesn't leave the pitch.

Yuuma wonders if he has his own reasons for agreeing this time. He follows his stare until his eyes land on Raimon's blue-haired defender, with the number 7 on his back. #7 is talking to Inamori-kun, who in his opinion is more interesting. But Yuuma isn't sure on exactly Nishikage's eyes are fixed on, the forward? Or the defender?

~<>~

It had been purely by accident that Mikado Anna spots her. If she didn't know better, she might think that it's a boy. But Anna knows her, so there's no way to mix her for someone else. Not by her hairstyle and not by the way she walks.

Anna excuses herself from talking with the other student council members after the match. There's no way in Hell that she - of all fucking (excuse the language) people - can mistake that person. Not now and not in a thousand years either. To be honest Anna's shocked she managed to catch with her.

They're in a more secluded corridor of the Stadium when the he-girl stops walking and turns on her heels. Anna wasn't exactly trying to be silent, more focused on catching up with the other girl's fast steps. She's wasn't trying to be silent, unlike all those times she helped Fudou-kun pull a prank only because Lina was busy.

Lina Kruger looks like a boy, that's a fact. Not to mention acts like one too. She leans against one of the walls with her arms crossed. During the FFI on Liocott Island, it had been hard to distinguish her from Mark. Lina, Anna's learned, likes to tie the left side of her hair in a tight side-ponytail almost at the back of her head, while the rest of her hair is messy and shoulder-length. Her hair is also longer and somewhat lighter than Mark's.

Still, Anna has to admit that if it had been anyone else, they'd be scared shitless (excuse the language). Because while Lina herself isn't that scary, her attitude usually spells trouble and people tend to stay away from her. Lina's teal eyes are as sharp as one of the daggers she used to give to Tsurugi-kun after a particularly sunny day. 

Anna has seen Lina look truly scary. That time in that Hell pit being a prime example.

"Yes?" Lina's tone is clipped, closed off and if she was anyone else she wouldn't have noticed the defensiveness hidden under that passive exterior.

Anna does, and she realizes that Lina hasn't realized she remembers. If it had the stern, but innocent version of herself from this world, that Anna wouldn't even know who this person is. Then again, Anna knows that Lina does know she saw the way her teal eyes narrow and her finger tap lightly on her arm.

She only notices because Anna knows Lina better than anyone other than Genda-kun does. Lina doesn’t know, she can just assume this is how 'Anna' usually is around people. Anna is also certain that Lina thinks she (Anna) believes she's a boy. It happens a lot, getting chocolate on Valentine's Day, from both girls and boys.

"Is there anything I can do for you..." Lina trails off.

Anna rolls her eyes when the sandy-haired libero glances away. Okay, so she maybe, might have spent too much time with Fudou-kun. Because the Kruger trails off as though she doesn't know her name. And Anna knows she does, Lina just doesn't want to risk being weird.

Anna holds out her hand. "Mikado Anna," her voice is even, not giving much away. "My name is Mikado Anna."

Lina looks down from her eyes and to her still outstretched hand. She glances at her and Anna nods with a smile, closing her eyes and tilting her head. 

"Sakuma Rin," the sandy-haired libero grabs her hand, grip firm.

Anna isn't surprised by her introduction. Lina never introduces herself as 'Lina Kruger' mostly because it signals her out as a foreigner. Using her mother's maiden name. Anna also isn't surprised by the bandage that is wrapped around Lina's thin wrist, she would be surprised if it didn't cover her whole arm.

"I would like to talk to you, Sakuma-san," she doesn't hesitate to start, but it's almost too fast to be understandable.

Lina understands anyway, as freaking always. She gently lets go of Anna's hand and once against crosses her arms. The position is so eerily similar to Tsurugi-kun that she had to stop herself from laughing.

"About what, Mikado-san?" Lina's voice is formal, in a way that gives a clear idea that she's addressing a total stranger.

In a way, she most definitely is. "You used to go to Teikoku, during our first year..." Lina suddenly looks more interested in the conversation. "After the match between Kidokawa and Teikoku you moved to Raimon -"

"Stop."

Anna unsurely opens her eyes - when had she closed them again? - to look at Lina's face. The libero had pushed away from the wall and is angry. Very angry to be honest. Eyes narrowed to the point they look like those of a cat, lips pulled in a scowl and fists clenched. And she feels the electric thrill run through her. This, she knows how to deal with. 

"I strongly suggest you think your next words more carefully, Mikado-san," in contrast to her appearance, Lina's tone is frosty.

She does as Lina 'asked' and thinks her next words. "Back during our first year..." A sharp crack and another electric pulse. "I, at Masato-kun's request, started dating you, Teikoku's libero. We dated until both you and Shuuya-kun moved to Raimon during second year. Masato-kun made us date because you wanted to act like a guy, not a girl."

Before Anna can continue her rant her lips are sealed shut by something soft and smooth. Her left hand flies in front of her. There's a smacking sound echoing while Anna backs away, her other arm reaching to vigorously wipe her mouth. When Anna looks back at Lina, there's a flush adorning her cheeks and she bursts into laughter at the handprint on that fair cheek. 

Yet, like fucking (excuse the vulgarities) always, Lina still manages to look smug while she wipes the corner of her mouth. Anna spits curses at her in Ancient Greek that she's learned all those years ago. The Kruger girl laughs, even as the strawberry-blonde threatens to make her cheeks symmetric.

Lina hums, a smirk tugging at her lips. "So..." How the Hell she can still look so smug with a handprint on her face, Anna will never know. "Teasing me about Aki-chan for ten years is completely fine, but I can't take your first kiss again?"

The tomboy has the gut to look offended after Anna scoffs. A devilish glint lights in Lina's teal eyes as she takes a step, to with Anna takes one back. The next words kind of stumble out of her mouth:

"Please transfer to Raimon Jr. High."

The corridor falls silent. With each passing moment, the blush on Anna's cheeks darkens until she's certain she looks like a tomato. Lina also registers what she said and bursts into laughter until she hunched, slapping a hand on her knee while the other holds her stomach. Anna huffs, stomping her foot with her flushed cheeks puffed out.

"You're kidding me, right?" Lina wipes away a tear before leaning in her personal space again. "I wasn't aware you had a sense of humor, A-nna-chan~."

The familiar nickname makes her insides flatter but outward, Anna's scoffing. "That's because I'm not, Lina. Joking, I mean," the libero's eyes narrow again. "You can't possible tell me you didn't enjoy the match just now. Their passion for soccer, the way they didn't give up. Inamori-kun's spark..."

She strategically trails off and it gives her the result she wanted. Lina's lips curl upward and she leans away from her. Anna smiles, and the sandy-haired girl scoffs. Shoving a hand in the pocket of her hoodie, Lina turns on her heel and raises the other one in a wave.

"I'll be thinking about your offer, Anna-chan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yuri. Not very graphic, but there anyway. Hope you're enjoying this so far. Also, Anna is more than a little relevant to the overall story and background of this series.  
> I would like to point out that Liocott volcano kind of exists outside of 'parallel universe bullshit'. So anyone inside in Tenkuu no Shito and Makai Gundan Z kind of remembers everything from Lina's original timeline. Mostly because of demon crystal and I'll explain later (read: much, much later) how it works.


	5. The Mysterious Coach Zhao Jinyun

"Hey, Tsuki," is the lame greeting she gets from the King of Goalkeepers.

Lina isn't sure if she should laugh or bang her head against the doorframe. Probably the latter, because when Jirou and the demon said they're bringing friends home, she wasn't expecting this. Sure, it's nothing new that Yuuto visits, now that he goes to the same school as the demon it's pretty easy to visit. Unlike Raimon which is so far away, thinking of that, how _is_ she supposed to get there?

Still, Lina's not sure how exactly she's supposed to react to this. "It's not raining. So, any reason at fucking all, you lot look like you jumped in a pool?"

She's not lying, there's been no raining. And yet, all these morons are soaked to the bone. Yuuto, Kazemaru, Kou-chan, Jirou and the demon are all standing drenched on the front porch.

"My keys fell in the river," Jirou rubs the back of his head.

"I'm sorry what?" Lina blinks while looking at her cousin. "Your keys, which are supposed to be around your fucking neck, fell in the river?"

The cyan-haired captain holds out his hands in surrender. "Yeah," she turns to Kou-chan, crossing her arms, "and we kind of, maybe started looking for them."

"Ah-ha," she nods. "Okay, whatever," she turns to Yuuto and the demon. "What's your excuse?"

"I saw them and went to help," the playmaker shrugs. "Then Sakuma pushed Haizaki in."

"Mature," she massages her forehead and lets them in. "I'm surrounded by idiots."

Lina smiles as Kazemaru chuckles, the back of his hand covering his mouth. She slightly annoyed when Kazemaru straightens himself. There's no comment on her part as the five soccer players take off their drenched uniforms.

[Strange] is what seeing Yuuto in a uniform other than Teikoku's or Raimon's is. [Scary] is the perfect word to describe how seeing Kazemaru wear Teikoku's uniform is.

It reminds Lina a bit too much of _that fucked up_ time. It's not long before she thinks about purple glowing crystals and dark hissatsu that are on borderline forbidden. Lina shudders and knows that the boys don't see; by nature, she isn't a fearful person, but Dark Emperors is a sore subject for her. Just like it's for all those that were members in it, and Raimon, Aliea Gakuen and later Inazuma Japan's.

"I'm getting you guys something clean," she turns around and heads to Jirou's room.

Lina trips on the stairs as her vision blurs. [Dizziness] is something she's used to after analyzing an entire match. To be honest, the only reason she made it back before the demon is that he had to return to Seishou Gakuen. Blurriness is also normal, or it became normal while she was in Russia.

The lightning in her veins pulses. While she's certainly not as scared of herself as she was after that accident in Hell, she's still a bit fearful. Lina's step doesn't falter again as she walks towards Jirou's room. She embraces the lightning in veins and the thunder in her heart when she's on the field.

On the field, Lina's one with the storm. Outside of it, the calm before a thunderstorm. Her heart beats in tone with Kazemaru's when she's around him. It draws the storm closer to the surface. Dangerously close to it while her mind continues to go into overheat.

Lina picks up some of Jirou's clothes, knowing that Yuuto and Kazemaru can fit in them. <Thank the Gods for sleepover> she thinks while picking some of Kou-chan's clothes. She heads to the demon's room and picks some for him as well, thankfully it's not too far from Jirou's.

Lina still finds it cute that almost every member of Teikoku has at least one of Kou-chan's t-shirts. She herself does have about three, - they're comfy - is the excuse she uses.

Two hours later after the boys get dry and Aunty and Mitsuko-san come home, they're having dinner. Lina had already called Kazemaru's parents and Yuuto's father to tell them that the two players are spending the night.

Kou-chan and Jirou are talking to Yuuto about how the soccer club is going, the Kidou sometimes putting a comment in. Kazemaru talks with Mitsuko-san about the reinforcement program. Aunty is questing the demon about the match, not that she's getting much out of him, the occasional nod. She managed to get a blush by mentioning Raimon's #10.

Lina just pokes at her food mostly, while blocking out most of the conversation. Clearing her throat when the aquamarine-haired defender starts rumbling at a too fast pace. Kazemaru rubs the back of his head while laughing and starts again, just slightly slower than before. Aunty understands the defender either way, a lifetime of friendship with Kazemaru's mother might also be helpful.

Lina sighs and stops stabbing her food to clear her throat before announcing:

"I'm going to be transferring to Raimon Jr. High."

The lightning in her veins flashes. The sudden silence is harder to ignore than the need to scratch the inside of her wrist. Kazemaru stops tapping his foot; Jirou and Kou-chan look like she killed one of the Genda's pets. The demon looks at her like he's never seen her before. A sudden clatter and everyone turns to Yuuto, whose chopsticks had fallen on his plate.

Aunty sighs. Mitsuko-san just stares at her fiance with concern. Mostly because all decisions made in this house have to pass through the older Sakuma first. This decision hasn't, so Lina kind of figures why Mitsuko-san is worried about.

"Elaborate, Lina," it sounds like an order. Not that Lina minds it much.

She can see the question in their eyes, and she doesn't blame them. Why would Lina - who can beat Yuuto in some academic subject - want to move from the one school that might beat Teikoku in academics?

Lina feels herself close off. She resists the urge to put her feet on the table - if only because it might give Hakuei-san a heart attack - as she puts a palm on the table instead. She balances the chair on its hind legs. Lina clicks her tongue before answering with:

"Despite the match today, in which they lost, I'd like to play with the soccer team there."

She sees the glance Aunty throws the demon to keep him silent and sited. "And do I actually have any saying in this? Knowing this family I'm going to say that the paperwork only needs my signature as your guardian to be completed."

Lina hums. "Yes, that's about it."

Mitsuko-san and Aunty share a look. "Mitsuko will be signing the papers, tomorrow. At Raimon," just as she thought she is off the hook, Aunty speaks again. "You'll be staying with an acquaintance of mine. She lives pretty close to Raimon."

Dinner's silent after that.

~<>~

Kirina is absolutely certain he's seen this guy before. Somehow, his brain corrects him and tells him that the sandy-haired transfer student is a girl. This doesn't make sense but Kirina would rather listen to his instincts. Something about this gu- girl, seems just too familiar.

He glances at Asuto. Asuto is a safe place, a close safe place. Still, the sandy-haired girl's aura feels like a thunderstorm... Kirina feels like he's felt this aura before... He's just not sure where. The teacher introduces her:

"Everyone, this is Sakuma Rin," <wrong!> Kirina's brain yells. "He's a third-year that transferred here from Outei Tsukinomiya. But though to a lot of moving, Sakuma-kun stayed back a year, so he's in our class. Sakuma-kun, what can you tell the class about yourself?" The teacher pushes the seemingly mute boy.

Nodding politely - and again Kirina feels like polite is a word that should never be near her - Sakuma-san introduces herself. "My name is Sakuma Rin," <wrong!> "I moved here to play soccer."

Kirina glances at Asuto, not shocked by the bright smile on his face. Somehow, Kirina can't help but feel even more suspicious. Why would she come to Raimon to play soccer? The match they had was the day before yesterday, and they got crushed.

Kirina can't think of one reason anyone would want to play football with their team. They would have gotten disbanded and sent back to Inakuni was it not for that sponsor. Sakuma-san catches him looking; her teal eyes sparkle for a moment while her lips stretch in a smile.

And a blurry memory resurfaces. A soccer ball, a blue-haired silhouette, a white-haired one and in between them a little sandy-haired boy holding the ball to him.

Kirina shakes his head and the image fades. "You can sit between Inamori-kun and Hiura-kun," the teacher instructs. "Hiura-kun, raise your hand."

Before he can, Asuto energetically lifts his hand. Sakuma-san smiles at him and walks over to sit between them. Now, closer, the aura seems even more familiar. It's electric, wild and untamed. For a moment, Kirina thinks he hears his aura crackle. <It's like a thunderstorm> he notes.

[Thunder and Lightning] are things he necessary likes. But right now, when he feels like he's staring right at a thunderstorm, Kirina remembers that he used to love them. He used to love running around the raindrop and in the frozen weather.

He thinks that maybe he imagined the feeling of wildness. Then he decided that no, he didn't. Because Sakuma-san's eyes flash to his, a knowing smirk tugging at her lips. Those teal eyes hold the same wildness as the wind on a stormy day.

After classes are over, he and Asuto walk over to the sandy-haired girl, who is packing her back. Teal eyes shimmer between them for a moment with cautiousness. Kirina doesn't know why they're doing this, but he sort of wants to. There are forty more minutes until practice officially starts.

"Yes, Inamori-kun? Hiura-kun?" <wrong> his mind once again blares at the polite tone. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

Kirina's a bit shocked when Asuto hesitates. Sakuma-san's no longer hurrying anywhere, but rather patiently leans against his new desk and waits. Still, despite feeling somewhat safe around the sandy-haired girl... There's a feeling of uneasiness in the pit of his stomach; like Sakuma-san is someone he should watch out for. [Dangerous] is what his instinct had screamed with the sandy-haired girl entered the classroom.

"Saku-"

Sighing, she cuts off Asuto by covering his mouth. "Let me stop you right there. Call me 'Rin'. Sakuma-kun's my brother."

Somehow, that feels like a lie. "Is Rin really your name?" Kirina asks. "You look like a foreigner."

'Rin' puffs and lowers her hand from Asuto's mouth. "No, it's Lina Kruger. Lin for short."

Lin-san - no that feels wrong, Lin-senpai then - sighs again. It still feels wrong.

Kirina is a bit surprised at the question that leaves his best friend's mouth. "Would you like to join the soccer club, Lin-senpai?" He smiles.

~<>~

Lina notes the exact second Inamori-kun steels himself. It's right when the little blue-haired defender asks about her name. She puffs, slightly amused at being called out on her bullshit. She uncovers the forward's mouth and introduces herself properly.

Still, as she does, she can see it in his eyes. It's a determined spark of ferocious love for that beloved sport he loves to play. Lina has seen it before, in a multitude of people and yet... <Ah... Can't believe I'm still weak for this kind of guys.> Because her treacherous mind wonders to Mamoru-chan, Fideo, and Tenma. Lina feels like either laughing or crying. Well, whichever one comes out first it's fine.

When the forward asks her if she wants to join the soccer club, she's not really that surprised. Getting invited is nicer than having to go through all the trouble of wandering the grounds like a lost little lamb. Despite knowing where everything is. But then Inamori-kun smiles.

And it feels like home, because he looks like Mamoru-chan. It makes the lightning pulse faster in her veins and the thunder in her heart boom louder. It makes Lina feel somewhat safer than she should.

Still, her lips twitch in a warm smile. She's surprised to see Hiura-kun's aura spike, in fear? Lina doesn't comment on it, because it's gone as soon as it came. A huff later and she's waltzing away from the two star-struck players. She swings her bag over her shoulder and turns to smirk at the two.

"Sure, I'll join," both brighten up and run to catch up with her. "Though expect some nicknames along the way."

"Why do you say that like it's a bad thing?" Hiura-kun tilts his head, innocently blinking at her.

Lina humphs. "Kirin-chan and Ina-chan," she points to each separately. 

"It's fine," there's a slightly dazed look in Kirin-chan's purple eyes. "Kirin-chan's fine."

"So, is Ina-chan!" The forward enthusiastically agreed.

~<>~

When Asuto walks in with Hiura and Lin-senpai, he can see the slight concern in Mansaku's eyes. Okay, Asuto can't lie and say Lin-senpai isn't scary, because he is. The chatter in the clubroom goes silent as Lin-senpai steps from behind. Asuto sees Kozoumaru frown.

Before they entered the building, the sandy-haired boy had asked him to introduce him as 'Sakuma Rin' which is the name that is in the official papers. He doesn't expect the coach to seem to know who Lin-senpai is.

"Everyone," Asuto talks first as Hiura just makes his way over to his locker, oblivious of the tension, "this is Sakuma Rin. He wants to join the team."

The clubroom stays silent for another second before a collective 'Huh?' ring around it.

Coach doesn't look very surprised, instead, he laughs that weird laugh. "Welcome to the team, Sakuma-kun. We're happy to have you."

Lin-senpai gives the man a polite bow. "Thank you for accepting me into the club."

After that, every member introduces themself. Norika is the one to say: 'I'm soooo glad there's another girl to play soccer on this team!'. Lin-senpai just nods and follows Norika to change.

Later, Lin-senpai follows Norika out of the changing room and Asuto smiles. The uniform with the number 12 on her back suits her. Lin-senpai smiles at him and Asuto is shocked to see Hiura follow the sandy-haired girl out of the clubroom. When the rest of the team arrives on the field, Lin-senpai and Hiura are practicing long passes.

They stop and wait for the coach's orders for the day. Asuto knows that all the ex-Inakuni players are eager to start practicing offense, but until now they haven't. Lin-senpai looks passive about the whole thing.

"Well then," Coach starts. "Today we'll train something besides defense."

Asuto and the team brightens. "Really?"

Goujin-senpai tries to confirm that they're training their offense. "So, that means we're finally doing offense!"

"I'm sorry to be a party-popper right now," everyone turns to Lin-senpai. The sandy-haired girl is staring at Coach, arms crossed. "But I really don't think that's the case."

Coach laughs. "As expected of Sakuma-kun. From here on we're doing long pass trap training. From now until the time is up."

Goujin-senpai pushes his way past Asuto. "Huh? Huh?!"

Captain seems to get weirded by the turn of events. "Why don't we do offensive training?"

~<>~

[Weird] is the perfect way to describe how Lina feels before the match. Sure, she started most matches on the bench, but that usually is with Megane's endless chatter in her ear. And maybe Natsumi-chan's and Haruna-chan's occasional bickering. Still, being benched means that she can observe the opposite team, rather than doing something stupid.

"Now, it's Raimon vs Minodouzan!" It's announced as if she doesn't know. "For Raimon, they'll be taking their last stand!"

<Not if I have something to say about it. This team's going to the nationals.>

"If they can't increase their number of wins, their chances will become hopeless! In team Minodouzan, a soccer reinforcement member has been dispatched to raise the power and level of their soccer! The previous Raimon Eleven's Kabeyama Heigoro! Originally, it was intended for Kabeyama to play. However yesterday, he inadvertently sprained his ankle. Now it's time for the kick-off."

Ina-chan passes to Goujin-kun and Raimon's three forwards advance. Only to get blocked by Minodouzan's members.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While Mark doesn't look girlish, I like to think that he's walking on the line. Anyway, Lin looks exactly like Mark, except for the hairstyle, which hers is in a half ponytail. She doesn't like getting called a girl and mostly dresses and acts like a boy.  
> For some of this chapter she'd dressed in Raimon's gakuran. The team finds out about her gender during practice.  
> Also, if I miss-spell sentences, please inform me. And if the P.O.V.'s are okay. This isn't beta-ed.


	6. Can They Defeat It! The Impregnable Fortress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> <...>is thoughts. Italics empathize words or phrases, or flashbacks. [...] mean things that I want to empathize differently. {...} are date I get from the fandom wiki about hissatsu or players that Rin pays attention to. They will appear more often in matches.

While most people believe that the last goal in a match is the most important, Lina's opinion differs. As a player, she feels like the most important goal is the first one. Mostly because her team barely ever scored the first one, and got more determined after that.

Their opponents, Minodouzan, has a solid defense and an incredible pressure. Still, whatever hissatsu they have... Lina's lips curl into a smirk.

It's not the iron-clad defense of Argentina's The Empire. Because Teres Tolue isn't on it and this is a jr. high team. Iron Wall doesn't exist yet in this world, <and probably never will> Lina bitterly thinks. Still, Twin Iron Wall doesn't exist either, and she's somewhat happy because of it.

Lina toys with the idea of teaching Kirin-chan or Golen Teres' Iron Wall. That way Raimon's defense might as well be impenetrable.

She would have toyed with the idea of using something like Northern Impact if the reinforcement member assigned to Minodouzan hadn't been Kabeyama. Lina doesn't feel like crushing this team with a hissatsu that violent. Yet, this is a Kabeyama that hasn't had the change to create 'The Mountain'.

Lina huffs under her breath. Minodouzan probably has a good defense. Offense, on the other hand... The Kruger thinks that they might get discouraged for a moment. Then she sees Ina-chan's eyes shine and she knows they're going to be fine. She watches as Ina-chan passes to Goujin-san. Doesn't watch his mouth when he talks. Goujin-san passes to Nari-san.

When the captain of Raimon speaks, it's determined and thankfully not panicking. "There has to be a way to break through it!" Nari-san passes to Sasuke.

To be honest, Lina wouldn't have noticed she switched to Aki-chan's superhuman hearing. 'Because focus is the key to blocking out useless sounds' is what Aki-chan would say while laughing his ass off.

There's a poke on her right side and Line squeaks. Only to cover her mouth and swirl around to look at Anna-chan, who's as blank as always. The Mikado is holding her phone and handed it to Lina as she turned back to the match.

The message on the screen reads: - The view is better from up here :) - 

Lina humphs at the smiling face. - Sorry, playing in second half - after hitting send, she mutes the device and turns back to the game. Sighing, Lina ignores the comments from the announcer as Sasuke dribbles into the other team's half.

Lina picks up the tablet when the coach laughs, it's a weird sound. Maybe even weirder than Yuuya's, <Never thought the day would come>. Still, Lina has little no idea what he is planing by making her handle this thing.

\- Defense only <3 - she types and a moment later all the players look at their bands. <I'm sorry.>

~<>~

_"Sakuma-kun, please stay after practice."_

_Lina only slightly turns to the mysterious coach, eyes narrowed. She trusts him about as far as she can throw him. While he half-way reminds her of Hitomiko-aneki and Coach Kudou, Lina trusted those two easily._ _Same strange and half-assed orders that get the player riled up. Thankfully, she's used to it. Still, she feels like he's someone with a rather impressive backstory, she just couldn't find it._

_Lina dutifully answers with a "Yes, sir."_

_She gives a half-assed excuse about staying behind. Nari-san and Yuu-kun don't really look fooled, and Kirin-chan pouts before dragging away his taller best friend. After she waves off Nari-san, Lina turns the chubby coach._

_She's not really surprised that he went from a laughing idiot to a serious man as soon as the others left._ _Next to him stands a short boy with green hair, blue eyes, rosy cheek and fair skin tone._

_"Li Hoa of China's Rojiura Shounentai, correct?" Is what first comes out of her mouth as she takes her place and shuts her eyes._

_She doesn't need that much information about a player from another country. "You know me?" It's a valid question, most people don't go around memorizing players from other countries._

_Lina hums while burrowing her head - more exactly her eyes - in her forearms. "_ _I saw your team's match against Shanghai Hoshinekodan. Moving on," she points in the general direction of Zhao Jinyun._ _"What can I do for you, Coach?"_

_She hears the man chuckles. "I'd like you to take care of sending the team messages during the matches."_

_"Huh?" The politeness in her voice vanishes; it's replaced by something ruder and somehow more her. "Why?"_

_Zhao Jinyun's no longer looking at her. "_ _You have a pretty good understanding of how people think, don't you, Sakuma-kun?"_

_Lina hisses at the thinly veiled challenge in his words. The lightning in her heart flashes and the thunder in her heart cracks and booms. [Violance] isn't really something Lina's fond of. But she has no problems resorting to it if the situation calls for it._

_"I guess I do," she answers nonchalantly, giving a half shrug. "You haven't answered my question, yet," there's a slight rumble in her voice._

_Lina hears the man laugh that_ _weird laugh. "When do you think you can play, Sakuma-kun? And for how long?"_

_Lina's eyes narrow, but she answers anyway. "_ _Second half, all of it."_

_"Then you don't need to worry about what will happen during the second half. You just have to take care of the first."_

~<>~

Lina's not surprised that Minodouzan has members that know hissatsu techniques. Franken-shu-tein is what it's call, she starts analyzing it; mostly because it gets used against Ina-chan. Yuuma taking revenge on her for not finding a solution to the problem.

The field cracks when player number 3 from Minodouzan stamps on it. Blue and green don't merge as he crosses his arms, the aura remaining somewhat separate. <Which means it's not completed> is what she thinks. The image of Frankenstein's monster appears from the ground as the aura runs circular around Minodouzan's 3. <It's slow> she thinks as the image reaches for Ina-chan with one hand. The forward's petrified because it's slow and Ina-chan can move fast enough. She knows he could dodge the fingers of the large mirage. When it reaches the ground, Ina-chan is set flying as Minodouzan's 3 receives the ball and stomps on it with one foot.

{Hissatsu technique category: block. Element: fire. Number of players needed for creation: one. Speed: avoidable. Damage: minimal. Optimal hissatsu categories for dodge: pass, dribble.}

While they hurt like a bitch after a match and during half-time, Lina couldn't say her eyes aren't useful. That would be a lie, they're just more of a pain in the ass. Too much color hurts her eyes and her vision starts getting blurrier. And mostly, her eyes just hurt too much.

Goujin-san intercepts Minodouzan's #3 pass. Expectedly, he gets blocked by one of their players, #4. The chubby defender uses the second hissatsu of the match: Mokkori Oka no Moai.

Hands clasped together, Minodouzan's 4 raises them and slams it into the ground. [Over sensitivity] is something Aki-chan used to tease her about; the fact that she feels the shock waves from the bench proves him right. The ground beneath Goujin-san's feet starts to tremor, and he stops running. A moment later and Rin wishes he had; the ground rises and forms a sort of platform, pretty far from the actual ground. The platform splits under him, and Goujin-san gets launched into the sky by a big Moai that shoots up from the split.

{Hissatsu technique category: block. Element: earth. Number of players needed for creation: one. Speed: avoidable. Damage: minimal to less-than-medium. Optimal hissatsu category for dodge: pass, dribble.}

Lina is slightly disappointed to admit that Raimon is unable to get the ball back too often after that. Lina had a vague idea of what the first half would be about at the start of the match. Now, she's certain of it. [Futigue] isn't something she feels like dealing with, not in the second half. If they're lucky, this won't end up like Inazuma Japan's match against Desert Lion, that would suck.

It's not long before the physical strength of the players falls to the point Lina feels embarrassed about it. Thankfully, it's not long until her brain registers the whistle, either.

<When the fuck did the first half end?> Lina's confused until she realizes that she got so caught up in the game she forgot to count the seconds, or set her alarm. She facepalms at the sheer stupidity that she can show sometimes. Well, neither team scored, so the score is still 0-0. <That's good.>

Lina puts on a pair of shades and closes her eyes behind them. When all the team is assembled, Goujin-san is the first to speak up:

"Hey, Zhao Jinyun! When are we gonna attack, huh?!" It's on the bad end of sharp, reprimanding and bitter.

Oku-chan is the next to speak and Lina's certain he's pushing up his glasses. "At this rate, it's going to be a draw."

She silently sighs as Sasuke starts talking. "Then everything will be over!" He's passionate, she'll give him that. "Let us attack already!"

She opens her eyes slightly, because there's a spike in an aura close to her and she doesn't want this to go down violently. Lina's apparently more right about Ina-chan than she originally believed. The fire in his eyes is a mirror image of that she's seen in Mamoru-chan and Tenma. <Glad there are people that still love soccer to this extent> her lips twitch.

"Coach, all of us have managed to take back soccer," the dark-haired forward starts. "That's why we want to see how far we can go in the Football Frontier, and play with all our might!"

While Lina had been expecting it, Zhao Jinyun's answer still rubs her the wrong - more irritating - way. "Well, in that case, feel free to defend with all your might."

Before any of the players could talk, she does:

"No matter what you say, the Coach's orders are absolute, aren't they?" It's a rhetoric question that no one answers. "If you attack now, it'd be useless and you'll get tired."

Goujin-san gets in her personal space. "You! Don't you even want to win?! Everything both you and this guy," he points at the coach, "say is just the opposite of what we need to win!"

"I do want to win."

~<>~

"I do want to win."

Asuto shudders when Lin-senpai speaks again. She removes the shades that she's been wearing and turns to glare at Goujin-senpai. In his opinion, Lin-senpai is a nice person, but the tone she had used was cold, chilly and down-right scary.

Dusting off her knees, Lin-senpai violently hands Captain his bottle of water and turns to stand face-to-face with Goujin-senpai. It's somewhat weird, because despite being shorter than Goujin-senpai, Lin-senpai looks scarier. A hand on her hip, and the other cracking her fingers against her jaws.

"I'll be replacing Oku-chan during the second half," there is no force in her voice, she says it like a fact.

All of them turn to Okuiri, who is nervously pushing up his glasses. "Sakuma-san already talked it over with me before the match. I agreed."

Asuto's jaw drops, before he hurries to ask why. Mostly in confusion, not that he minds playing with Lin-senpai or something. It's not like she scares him or something. Nope, not at all.

The dark blue-haired boy shrugs. "My stamina isn't that great. And Sakuma-san needs time to analyze the opponent. We agreed that us switching is the best course of action."

After that, no one talks until they get in their positions, with only Lin-senpai offering a half-advice about passing. Asuto is worried that the team's energy might change with Lin-senpai in Okuiri's place. Surprisingly, it doesn't. And Minodouzan starts the second half with the kick-off.

Asuto feels like his body moves before his brain gives the order. Or that's how it feels like anyway. Minodouzan's forward couldn't have touched the ball that he got for more than a second before he steals it. There's some sort of relief in his body as soon as his foot touches the ball. It's only a ghost of a feeling before Asuto passes to Goujin-senpai.

Before the match started, Lin-senpai had suggested fast-passes to avoid getting tackled or caught in Minodouzan's defense. 'They have no reason to go after a player if the ball is no longer in that player's possession, don't you think so?' is what she asked. 

Asuto is shocked at how fast the ball moves after Lin-senpai passes it. He doubts the sandy-haired defender touched it for more than a second. Because a moment Goujin-senpai passes her the next it ball's curving towards Captain.

Who then passes over to Kozoumaru, who gives it to Goujin-senpai. As soon as the ball touches the older's foot, the Eleven bangs all chime. - A warning for everyone - it's followed by a multitude of arrows.

Asuto mumbles 'warning?' in confusion. The second half of the message appears soon after Goujin-senpai complains about the space between the messages being too long. - those who don't defend are fired <3 ^w^ -.

Asuto hears his senpai click his tongue and turns to look at him in concern. Goujin-senpai was glaring at the coach. "I can't take this anymore!" He sneers. "Let's go, Asuto!"

Asuto lets out a startle 'huh?' and is surprised when it's followed by a snicker from behind him. Glancing behind him, he sees Lin-senpai covering her mouth while snickering. He turns back to Goujin-senpai. 

"Whatever a shady guy like that says..." Fists clenched, he knows the older forward is seriously angry. "I'm not gonna listen! Let's attack!"

He gives a weak protest before Goujin-senpai says to go forward. Asuto uncertainly turns to the other team's half of the pitch. For a second he's not sure what he should do.

Surprisingly, it's Kozoumaru that puts an end to their 'rebellion'. "Give it up! Give it up for now," he starts again. "It's not the right time to attack."

As Asuto expects, Goujin-senpai rises to a non-existing challenge. "You, what do you think you're saying?!"

A gentle tap on the shoulder makes him blink and turn. "I'll give the signal for we switch to offense," Lin-senpai then turns to go back to her position. "Momentarily, please focus on passing. Hey, Sasuke. Did you figure it out?" She asks, sounding genuinely curious.

"Yeah," the short boy nods. "This way we won't lose any points."

~<>~

Lin-senpai observes, a lot. She doesn't move from her original position if it's not to get a pass. Which she sends away as soon as it's on her foot. Curving passes or direct ones. It doesn't seem to matter to her as long as the ball doesn't touch her for too long. That's what Kirina has been seeing since the second half started.

He's not even sure what about Lin-senpai doesn't sit well with him. Actually, scratch that, it might not even be her that bothers Kirina. It might just be her relationship with those two.

Those two being the boys that he'd seen with Lin-senpai during their last match. They sit secluded in the dark part of the arena. One's shorter with messy, reddish-pink hair while the other is taller and blond. After more analyzing, he concluded that the taller one is a goalkeeper and the shorter a forward, or midfielder.

Lin-senpai said he's pretty sharp after having a talk with him during practice. And that he has good analyzing skills. 'A sharp mind tends to come with sharp eyes, even if you're wearing glasses or are blind in one eye.' Kirina's not sure what that means yet.

He'll figure it out later.

Because Minodouzan switches to offense. All the players move and the first thing he sees is that they are hectic. While in a stand-still, the walls are continuations of each other. While the players move, they lose their advantage of that impenetrable defense. Because they have different tempos. So, the walls move, shift and clash against one another.

Kozoumaru is the first to get sent over the walls. Kirina runs in front of the goal, not entirely sure what he's going to do. From the corner of his eye, he sees Norika prepare herself. He's not sure if she's planning on catching him or the ball.

He votes himself.

Then Iwato is in front of them. A thick defensive wall suddenly stands between Minodouzan and Raimon. The other team's forward falls and loses the ball, on which Iwato stomps on.

There's a sudden rush of electricity and a loud crack which causes Kirina to swirl around. In the vacant spot beside him stands Lin-senpai, a smirk on her lips and arms crossed. Kirina notices a glint of _something_ in her teal eyes. [Slyness] or [satisfaction] he can't be sure.

He hears the beep from the sandy-haired girl's band. While he can't see what the massage says, Lin-senpai seems happier. The glint fading into something slightly ferocious before fading and getting replaced by a more calm spark.

"Alright!" She shouts and everyone's attention is on her; she smacks a hand on Kirina's shoulder, which makes him stumble. "Time for our counter-attack! Everyone, move up. Remember, long passes people!"

With that, the older girl walks back to her position. Kirina rubs his shoulder to loosen the pain in it somewhat as Iwato long-passes someone in the front.

Not long after that, the first goal goes to them. Kirina has nothing to say except that Kozoumaru's Fire Tornado is amazing. Unfortunately, that only leads to more complications when Minodouzan uses their hissatsu technique: Rensa The Wall.

"It's an override hissatsu," he turns to Lin-senpai in confusion, before she explains. "An override is a type of hissatsu that is similar to combination hissatsu, but it combines one or more hissatsu techniques into a newer and stronger hissatsu. Rensa The Wall is The Wall used by four different people and merged into a hissatsu."

While explication is long, Kirina - thankfully - catches the base of it. Soon, the ball ends up in Kirina's possession. He sees the gaps again. The clashing is violent and he's not sure if he can make it.

"A critical hit with the tips of your toes, sending the ball into a long pass," he hears Lin-senpai call out.

Kirina smiles when he gets what she means. He lightly kicks the ball just in front of him, it the air. Cold mist gathers around the ball and him as he spins. It turns to solid ice, and he kicks it. The frozen ball passes through the gap, and far enough to reach Asuto on the opponent's field. 

"Koori no Ya," again he turns to Lin-senpai, whose hands were crossed behind her back. "Pretty good name for that, don't you think?. Well done," he expects a rough pat not to get his hair ruffled by the older. "You're the first person to create a pass hissatsu technique."

"Goal!" The announcer yells just before the final whistle blows.

<2-0 for Raimon.> Kirina's more frozen that Koori no Ya when Asuto jumps on him. <Our first victory in the Football Frontier. That means...>

"We can still play soccer," Lin-senpai says as though reading his thoughts.

~<>~

"If you two dumbasses plan on staying for matches, please sit beside other people."

As silent as usual, neither of them had noticed when Lin-chan sneaked away from the field and behind them. Yuuma knows that she knows why they sit apart from other people. Often, his comments appear to be rude, if not downright insulting.

"Why?" Nishikage is the first to ask.

"Let's just say that our little defender's a little sharper than I originally thought," Lin-chan shrugs, not really worried about that. "And Inamori Asuto says he saw the two of you talking with my baby brother. Yes, I'm slightly worried.

Yuuma doesn't answer, instead, he asks:

"Who exactly is that coach?"

Lin-chan hums before shrugging again. "I got jack-shit on him. It's like he didn't exist until about two weeks ago."

Yuuma smiles, careless. "Then I suppose his name will be known from here on?"

Nishikage's voice is low when he talks. "But, Nosaka-san... there's no reason for you to be interested in such a thing."

He half-way ignores him, turning away from them so that his eyes can zoom in on long silver hair. "Nishikage-san's right," it's Lin-chan who speaks. "Standing before you, the Emperor of Tactics, players are more than doomed, Yuuma."

He gives a half-hearted 'Yeah' in response. Still, he turns to the pitch to look at Inamori-kun while he happily chatters with Hiura-kun. Yuuma has to admit that he's slightly more interested in the blue-haired defender. He glances at Nishikage and follows his gaze.

Once again it's on those two. But, during the match, Yuuma's certain that he looked at the defender more than the forward.

Something wicked twists inside of him as a thought passed him. Inamori-kun seems to be the pillar of hope for Raimon's team, and that somehow makes him feels weird about potentially playing against him. Or of using Grid Omega against him. <Scratch that> Yuuma's eyes narrow. <Using Grid Omega on Haizaki-kun doesn't sound any better either.>

"Is there something wrong with me?" The question slips out of him.

There's a moment of utter silence between his companions - friends, a voice that sounds somewhat like Lin-chan whispers. When he turns to look at them, he's slightly surprised by the horrified looks on their faces.

Lin-chan holds out her hands over her head and turns on her heel. "I'm out. Hope you enjoy, Nishikage-san~"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I read 'I guess we are all kinda freaky, huh?' by Yui_Kuromori and 'as long as they can breath' by another amazing author. This work is ever so slightly inspired by those works, check them out


	7. The Darkness of Seishou Gakuen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starting to build the relationship between Asuto, Haizaki and Nosaka. Also Hiura and Nishikage.

Ryouhei sighs. Apparently, he spent too much time with Lina, because he does that a lot. 

As pointed out by Kidou, Ryouhei sighs about as much as Lina. The bastard had nothing better to do on a weekend and counted how many times a day Ryouhei sighs. At first, he thinks that Kidou's exaggerating. Like, who the Hell sighs sixty-four times, in a single day?

Apparently, Lina beat that and once sighed seventy times, in a single fucking day. Ryouhei wonders with how much stupidity his older cousin deals with on a daily bases to sigh that much.

While he knows that Lina is going to lecture him, skipping practice is nothing new to Ryouhei. Kidou will - also - probably harass him with the first chance he gets.

What he doesn't expect is his 'teammates' - they are your teammates, you brat, a voice that sounds like Lina says in his head - to be waiting for him in front of the school. Shiratori Tsumuki and Orio Fuyuki to be more precise. Fuck Lina for making him remember his 'teammates'' names.

Shiratori-senpai is the first to speak up, a soft frown on his face. "Where are you going? Haizaki."

A hand on his hip, Orio continues. "Practice is about to start."

"Sorry," no, he really isn't, "but I'll pass," that he is going to do.

It's not that Ryouhei hates his 'teammates', it's just that he doesn't really like them much either. Captain is the only one that Ryouhei doesn't think of as a complete and utter nuisance. Maybe because there's Kidou, but that guy's simply a bastard. He somewhat likes the blue-haired defender.

Ryouhei rolls his eyes and sighs as a way to resist the urge. The urge being to cover his one, not covered eye. Sun light's too uncomfortable sometimes.

Orio scoffs. "We're touching up for tomorrow's match. You can't just ditch."

<Oh, yeah? Watch me> he closes his eyes. "Wherever I'm gonna play in the next match or not, it doesn't matter," he's aware he sounds arrogant, and he doesn't really care.

"You're causing trouble for everyone," Shiratori-senpai's eyes are narrowed when Ryouhei opens his to look at him.

Ryouhei doesn't really care. "Even if I don't cooperate with you guys, I can score points. It's a waste of time."

Orio tenses, fists clenching. "Why you!" 

Ryouhei doesn't look at him, eyes still on Shiratori-senpai. "Haizaki," there's an order hidden in his voice, even before he says it, "that's enough."

<If it's enough, let me leave already>. "Don't be so touchy, senpai," it's disrespectful, not that he cares. "Bye."

The two let him walk away after that. Unfortunately, he doesn't really get more than a couple of steps towards the school gate. Hie eyes trailing off the ground, the first thing he notices it the sky-blue armband. The second is the look of utter disappointment on Captain's face. It's an odd look on the usually calm and friendly boy.

Lina's going to kill him if she knows that he got the older boy mad, or sad.

"Haizaki..." The blue-haired boy starts, eyes narrowing. "Why do you isolate yourself on purpose?"

Ryouhei's a bit confused, but still bites out: "On purpose?"

Captain continues to talk like he never spoke. "Whenever you see that the opponent is weak, _every single time_ , you'll make a play that disrupts the team. Why?"

A smirk tugging at his lips, Ryouhei answers as soon as the older finishes. "Could you stop spitting nonsense?" Okay, he admits it's not bullshit, not that he'd tell anyone that. "Isn't it fine if I'm just in a bad mood sometimes?"

"Is that really the case?" The captain of Seishou doesn't hesitate to ask.

Instant irritation. "What are you getting at?"

Sue him, he doesn't like getting called on his bullshit. Not like Lina doesn't do that enough.

"What is the reason you're playing soccer?" <He's sharp> Ryouhei smirks.

"Because I like soccer. Something like that," he adds, smirk still intact. "See ya, I'm going."

Thankfully, the stubborn captain doesn't try to stop him. Though Ryouhei glares at his screen when Lina's name pops up on the screen. <Smart bastard>.

~<>~

Asuto glances around, very much confused as to where he is. While on an errand for the coach, he got really lost. There are shops all around, and people talking and walking on either side of the road. It's a very nice day if Asuto is being honest; there's a little breeze and the sun shines from above. But, somehow it doesn't feel right.

Asuto shakes his head, but can't shake the feeling. Still, he looks down at the map, only to realize he's been walking while thinking. And... yup, he's most certainly lost. <Is this how Hiura feels like?>

He really doesn't want to imagine Lin-senpai's face when he comes back without ice cream. If there's one thing Asuto had noticed about the older girl, it's that she's about as obsessed with ice cream as Hiura is with blueberry cheesecake. And Hiura without blueberry cheesecake after getting promised blueberry cheesecake is at another level of scary.

He only hopes that he'll know the way back because thankfully, he has to get the ice cream on the way back. Lin-senpai had even given him enough money to buy everyone ice cream. And Asuto got lost.

Coach had drawn him a map. And he understands it about as much as Lin-senpai understands why it's weird to have a freezer filled with ice cream. Or how much Hiura understands anything other than familial love.

"Coach..." Asuto sighs while looking around and glancing at the map. "This map is way too confusing. Seriously..."

He can see the man laughing. <And just for ice-cream and a sports towel. The ice-cream is in Inazuma Town, so why do I have to go to a different city for a sports towel?>

Thankfully, Asuto finds the cursed shop eventually. Eventually meaning twenty minutes later. He starts walking towards it before stepping back in confusion. Inside a different shop is a silver-haired boy. <Haizaki...?> Asuto's not sure why, but he steps into the shop and marvels at the inside of it.

"Wow," Asuto awes while looking around, "it's pretty lively in here."

He turns to the silver-haired forward. Asuto tilts his head in confusion before walking over to the younger boy. The taller boy is playing some game that he doesn't really understand. He clears his throat and calls out:

"Excuse me," multicolor eyes look his way. "You're Seishou Gakuen's Haizaki-kun, right?" The forward doesn't respond, so Asuto smiles. "I'll be seeing your match tomorrow!"

"Who are you?" It's a bit on the rude side and for some reason, Asuto thinks of Lin-senpai.

Still, he stares at the younger forward in confusion. He'd seen the boy at Raimon's match against Minodouzan. The only reason for that being that Haizaki has long, silver hair, and he's tall.

But instead of saying something like that Asuto opts for: 

"Come on, we just had a match recently! I'm Raimon's Inamori Asuto!" He (re?)introduces himself with a bright smile.

"Ah..." Haizaki doesn't look like he cares, turning back to his game. "That petty newbie school."

Okay, that is down-right offensive. "Petty newbies?! Raimon's not a newbie!" He protests defensively.

"You lost though, right?" He says it as the fact it is. "Completely," he slightly turns and there's a smug smile on his lips.

Asuto doesn't back down, nor does he look away from the other forward's multicolored eyes. "Sure, we lost... but we can still turn things around!" He's determined to make that happen. "We're gonna go to nationals!"

Haizaki puffs, seemingly finding something amusing about his statement. "Heh, can you even make it at that level?" There's a mocking undertone to his words.

Asuto elects to ignore it, despite having some pride as a senior. "We'll do it! No matter what kind of training, we'll never back down!"

"Sure, sure," the taller huffs, still engrossed in the game.

Noting the way he got dismissed, Asuto changes to subject, slightly. "But, Haizaki, is it okay for you to be playing here? Don't you have to prepare for your match?"

"I'm not playing tomorrow," there's an emptiness in his voice that he notes.

Asuto is startled at the news. "Huh?! Why?! Aren't you a starter?"

Haizaki doesn't look at him. "I'm the one who decides whether I play or not. Tomorrow, I don't want to," he shrugs. "So, I won't play. That's it."

He's - even more - shocked at these words. "So, Seishou allows that kind of attitude?!"

"Once you're at my level," he says.

~<>~

Ryouhei isn't even freaking sure why he's bothering to talk to the guy. Inamori Asuto... Lina talked a bit about him on the phone. <He's bright> is what he thinks at being this close to the boy while talking to him. It rolls off him, genuine and blinding. <Maybe Kidou isn't that far off.>

"I'm not playing tomorrow," he answers when Inamori asks him why he's here and not at practice.

He can tell he threw the guy off. His voice is startled when he questions again: "Huh?! Why?! Aren't you a starter?"

It's so genuine, Ryouhei thinks of slamming his own or Inamori's head against something. "I'm the one who decides whether I play or not," <why the hell am I telling him this?>. "Tomorrow, I don't want to. So, I won't play. That's it."

"So, Seishou allows that kind of attitude?!"

<No, no it doesn't.> "Once you're at my level," he states instead.

"But you've finally got a match! Why won't you play?"

It's so genuine and innocent it makes him sneer. "You're damn annoying!" He somehow feels like he's lying. "I just don't feel like it."

He grabs his prize and walks away with a 'Bye'. There's a part of his brain the whispers <You scared him. Good fucking luck fixing that> it sounds an awful lot like Lina. <What's there to fucking fix?!> mentally rages. The voice obviously doesn't answer with anything other than an 'idiot'.

Okay, say what you will, but Ryouhei isn't that thick. As for a fucking voice in his fucking head to call him an idiot after saying something that fucking weird, he thinks that he might be a bit more fucked up than he thought. Or maybe he just spent too much time with Lina since she got back.

Not that the voice was wrong. He scared himself, he must have scared the guy off. Ryouhei felt like crushing that dream of his. Ruining the older boy, breaking that innocence of his. Ryouhei tries to not think of it.

_Except he does._

Because he doesn't want to break Inamori's bright spirit, no. He wants it to burn brightly and he wants to take that innocence. Keep it and make sure no one else taints that bright light.

And he doesn't mention it to Akane, despite knowing that he can. Whatever he's feeling, he has to deal with. Akane should just focus on healing.

~<>~

"Revenge?" Ina-chan is the first to speak after Sasuke finishes.

Lina doesn't add anything, just hums with her eyes closed. Her eyesight is still very much shit at this point. She knows about Akane-chan thanks to Yuuma. Also thanks to Mitsuko-san. All she knows that the demon had closed himself off after the incident with Ares. 

Lina herself never mentioned going through the program. If not to keep the demon's mind at rest then because it had no effect on her. Sasuke had returned a bit earlier from who-knows-where and started telling them what he saw. And that the demon's reason for playing soccer is revenge. Lina knows it's more than that.

Lina opens her eyes just in time to see Sasuke nod. "Yeah. It seems that his reason for playing soccer is for revenge."

She holds back a chuckle at how adorably confused Ina-chan looks. "Hizaki is? But, how does soccer even lead to getting revenge?" She can't shake off the image of Shiro in her head.

"It's because of Akane-chan," she answers and they all turn to her while Sasuke nods.

"Akane?" Head tilted to the side, Ina-chan looks even more adorably confused. "Who?"

Norika jumps to conclusions faster than the rest. "Don't tell me... his girlfriend?"

Lina feels a bit of pity when she watches Ina-chan's expression turns almost sour. She's the only one to notice, though. "No, Akane-chan's a dear friend of his," she's quick to correct.

"You know him?" Yuu-kun asks. "Personally, I mean."

"My aunt knows his mom," and that, people, has to be the understatement of the fucking year. "Did he say anything specific?" Lina turns to Sasuke.

He nods. "Yeah, something about Ares no Tenbin, but I couldn't tell what any of it meant."

"Ares no Tenbin?" Ina-chan speaks the question on almost everyone's mind.

Lina isn't surprised when Yuu-kun explains. "It's an educational system that's become a hot topic lately. The system instructs you from early childhood until you become an adult."

She continues the explanation before Ina-chan gets the change to ask. "There was a bug in the system. Akane-chan got into the program and got affected by the bug. She's unresponsive ever since. Ares no Tenbin governs over the school that I was at, Outei Tsukinomiya, and their soccer team. To take down Ares, the demon wants to prove the program is unsuccessful."

"So..." Ina-chan's pretty determined after a moment of silence. "Haizaki's soccer is the real deal!" 

Lina humphs as she watches the boy's green eyes sparkle. This time it's not the insane love for soccer that she shares. But it still makes her remember Mamoru-chan and Tenma. Because it's the same look Mamoru-chan had while talking about Shuuya-chan and Yuuto. And the same look that Tenma had while talking about Victor and Takuto.

Fortunately, this time it's not obvious to every fucking person in the whole fucking room. Not as he starts talking about the demon. Quite passionately might she add.

"When I see Haizaki putting his all into soccer, I get fired up... A half-hearted person without real reason... wouldn't be able to play like that."

Lina smiles while licking her ice cream as Michinari-kun breaks up his passionate speech. "Still, when it comes to Haizaki, the bad rumors don't end. Even if he's strong, he's still a problem child."

Before Ina-chan can protest, Lina interferes before anyone else. "Let's just go see the match tomorrow. I got tickets for everyone!"

While Ina-chan certainly doesn't seem to want to drop the subject, Lina reaches a hand and pats his head. To be honest, she can't wait for him to meet Yuuma. Now that's going to be one for the ages.

~~~~

The next day, Lina is walking in front of the Inakuni Raimon members. "Hurry up," she orders as Kirin-chan stops to look around. "You guys are going to get lost," she grabs him and throws her arm around his shoulders. "So stick close, okay?"

"Are you meeting with someone, Lin-senpai?" Ina-chan asks, doe eyes on full display.

Lina nods while humming and directs the rest of Raimon to the player's entrance. "This entrance is used for players that have IDs. Last time we walked in like people, now we're going through here."

After getting inside the building, Ina-chan uncomfortably comments: "It kinda feels like we're sneaking in..."

Lina crosses her hands over her chest and taps her finger on her arm while Yuu-kun answers. "To most people, soccer players are special people."

"Like VIPs," both Anna-chan and Sasuke add.

There are a couple of high-pitched squeals coming from some girls. Maybe it's because she's so used to them that Lina picked up on the familiar footsteps. She turns to the direction of the footsteps.

And sure enough, Yuuma and Nishikage-san are standing right behind her. Lina ignores the shocked gasps but doesn't ignore the tug on her sleeve. From the corner of her eye, she sees Kirin-chan standing slightly behind her. And if anything, she just pulls the shorter boy beside her and throws her arm around his shoulders again.

Lina doesn't miss the slight furrow of Nishikage-san's brow. She's pretty Goddamned sure everyone else does.

"Lin-chan, I'm glad you could make it," beside him, Nishikage-san sighs; Yuuma always attracts too much attention.

"Hey," she smiles at the two and feels another tug, this time on her hoodie. "It's good to see you guys too, Yuuma, Nishikage-san."

"Yes," Nishikage-san really is a man of few words.

Lina doesn't hide the groan that falls pass her lips when a mischievous glint in Yuuma's eyes when he looks at Raimon's players. "So, you are the ones Lin-chan took such an interest in. Thank you for watching out for her. I most certainly hope she didn't give you too much trouble."

Kirin-chan seems to gain his courage. "Lin-nee doesn't cause any trouble. She keeps us out of it!" Is the proud statement that silences everyone.

Lina tasks a moment as a memory resurfaces. A tiny, light-blue-haired boy calling her that. Purple eyes sparkling with wonder. And Lina feels her stomach clench; she prides herself for having a good memory. But she forgot Kirin-chan.

She sees Yuuma's eyes are zoomed on her face, but Kirin-chan turns to her, innocent eyes blinking. "Is it okay if I call you that?"

The Kruger snorts while slapping a hand over her face. "Sure. Totally cool with it. Anyway, these are Nosaka Yuuma and Nishikage. The captain" she pointed at Yuuma, "and the goalkeeper" she gestures at Nishikage-san, "of Outei Tsukinomiya. Yuuma, Nishikage-san these -"

She sighs when Ina-chan cuts her off by offering a hand to Yuuma. "I'm Inamori Asuto. It's a pleasure to meet you, Nosaka."

Lina would have covered Kirin-chan's eyes if he hadn't introduced himself in a similar manner to Nishikage-san. <I'm sorry> she mentally apologizes to a certain white-haired person. Yup, those are fucking rainbows. She sighs as Nishikage-san shakes his head when Yuuma decides to speak:

"Would you guys like to sit with us?"

Yup, Lina's going straight to Hell. <I'd much rather deal with that bastard than this guy> she thinks and cringes. Because no, she'd rather deal with Kageyama Reiji than that bastard.

Maybe when she gets to Hell, she'll see that demon there too. Because Ina-chan looks oh-so-happy at the suggestion and easily agrees. So does Kirin-chan.

And Lina and Nishikage-san share a look that is somewhere between 'sorry' and 'please help me'. They both look at the rest of Raimon. Lina simply sighs before reaching for Anna-chan to drag her along with Kirin-chan. After the very aloof captain and very much whipped forward.

"Let's go," she sighs again. "The last thing I want is those two by themselves."

Yuu-kun and Nishikage-san are the first to agree, followed by Michinari-kun and Sasuke. Ina-chan and Yuuma shouldn't be left by themselves, especially when they're together. The only thing left to do is make a demon get his head out of his ass and add him to the mix. They hurry to catch up to those two.

Lina then bitterly thinks that the demon might have already added himself to the duo. An over-enthusiastic soccer-obsessed Golden Retriever, an almost as smart as her tactician, and the slightly distant ace striker with a possessive attitude.

Yup, history sure likes to repeat itself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like Tsuguri's Russian lineage in the games. Victor is Tsurugi's middle name in this.  
> Just to point this out, the acquaintance that Arashi talked about is Kazeaki Yone. So Lin's staying with Inakuni Raimon at Kogarashi Manor.  
> Also, please comment on what anime you guys are watching


	8. The Flame Ace Striker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this picks up from where the last chapter ended. So the match hasn't started yet.

If there's something obvious, it's that Ina-chan is enthusiastic to see Haizaki play. Also, talking with Yuuma - who listens intently - about Inakunijima seems to help brighten his mood. Yuu-kun and Michinari-kun look mildly concerned about how fast they got friendly. Kirin-chan's silent while he's leaning against her shoulder.

While Nishikage-san and Anna-chan just stand and observe, slightly worried for their teammates. Sasuke is also enthusiastic because Kidokawa is the team Shuuya-chan plays at.

Lina herself isn't sure how to feel. On one hand, Kidokawa is the team Shuuya-chan and Masato-chan play at, so she wants to cheer for them. On the other, Seishou is the team Yuuto, Seiryuu and the demon played at. There's also the matter of Lina's bet with Masato-chan the day before.

She hopes it's going to be fine. Because Masato-chan isn't playing, which is good news for Seishou. Masato-chan on the pitch means Fire Tornado DD. Lina thinks that other than the horrible team-plays that Seishou has because of the demon, they should be fine. And that means winning the bet.

That is until Lina sees the demon walk into the field, dressing the goalkeeper's blue uniform. The announcer seems to have a similar reaction:

"With both the Demon of the Field, Haizaki Ryouhei, and the Flame Ace Striker, Gouenji Shuuya, I thought we'd be having a battle between strikers, but what's this?! Haizaki's in the position of the goalkeeper! What exactly is Seishou Gakuen's Coach Kudou planning?!"

Lina scoffs and all her companions turn to her, and she sighs. "I really don't think that's Kudou-san's plan," more confused looks, even from Yuuma. "It's more likely Yuuto's plan. A professional wouldn't take a risk like that unless they're absolutely certain of it. Smart move, but a more than a bit risky if Ryouhei doesn't pull his head -"

Anna-chan - who is on her other side - instinctively covers her mouth with both of her hands. "What Lina means," she gives a pointed glare to the other girl, "is that the Kidou-kun wants to make Haizaki-kun see that playing with his team is more useful than his solo play."

"Seishou's Kidou really makes some bold moves then," Nishikage-san points out.

"It's fine if we understand the coach's intention of allowing this," Yuuma nods, getting the idea. "However, it looks like Haizaki-kun himself still has no idea."

"Against us," Ina-chan starts, "it was pretty clear that Seishou's teamwork doesn't work because of Haizaki."

There's a soft smirk on Yuuma's lips while he asks: "Now then, what's going to happen?"

Lina hums, slightly thoughtful. "It all comes down to one thing," she sighs at the confused looks. "If Yuuto's plan works or not. But then again, that comes down to what Ryouhei in that position. There are two things he can do: one, he tries to attack when he's supposed to guard the goal; or two, he starts giving helpful orders to his teammates. And there's option three."

"What's option three, Lin-nee?" Kirin-chan innocently asks.

She shrugs. "He does both. In that exact order."

When the match starts, it's Kidokawa's kick-off, from Shuuya to Mukata Masaru. Lina isn't surprised when the Mukata triplets pass the ball between themselves. She's surprised that it somehow feels different from last year. <They're certainly faster> she watches as Masaru passes to Shuuya-chan with a raised brow.

_So, there's a difference._

Last year those three would pass to no one but themselves. This time around they're playing with their teammates. And Lina takes a minute to mentally thank both Shuuya-chan and Masato-chan for being so patient.

Lina faintly hears Sasuke comment something, but she doesn't actually listen. Just continues to look at the match as Shuuya-chan elegantly dodges Seishou's attempts at stealing the ball from him. 

{Hissatsu technique category: shoot/shoot chain. Element: fire. Number of players needed for creation: one. Speed: medium, stoppable. Damage: less-than-medium. Optimal hissatsu category for stop: catch, block, counter shoot.}

The first thing she notes outside of the usual analysis is that it's weaker. It's got to be about as fast as Sasuke's, and just a little stronger. Two defenders jump in front of the demon to stop it. Lina humphs when the demon falls on his ass behind them. The two defenders do stop the shot, thankfully.

Sasuke is quick to point out that that's not even close to the full power of Fire Tornado. Lina verbally agrees to that, whole-heartedly.

Nishikage-san's calm voice snaps Lina out of her thoughts. "Can Haizaki handle this level of humiliation?"

She shakes her head, a grimace on her face. "Probably no."

"Isn't this just the way that person does things?" Lina thinks that Yuuma's gaze might have flickered to Yuuto for a moment. "The original Raimon's Kidou Yuuto..."

The sandy-haired girl huffs, crossing her arms over her chest. "This kind of _thing_ ," she glares at Anna-chan who was about to elbow her, "is right up Yuuto's alley."

"KIDOU!"

Lina winces at the loud shout, she sees Yuuto glance at the temporary - and temperamental - goalkeeper. <Interesting, so they don't really get along, huh?> she smirks. The ball gets passed to Kidou, who is soon marked by Shuuya-chan.

The [Absolute Leder of the Pitch] against the [Flame Ace Striker]? <Now that's something worth watching>. Lina isn't really that surprised when Yuuto passes Shuuya-chan, who had dived for a slide-steal. She's surprised - albeit not really that much - when his pass gets intercepted by Nishikage.

"Good to know it's not just the Mukata brothers that got better at teamwork," from the corner of her eye, she sees Anna-chan nod. "All of Kidokawa Seishuu has. Shuuya-chan turned Kidokawa into a team that bases around teamwork."

"So, Seishou, who has trouble with teamwork, is facing off against a complete team-soccer?" Ina-chan tries to verify.

Yuuma nods, "Yes."

"In other words," Lina shrugs. "Seishou is doomed unless Ryouhei figures out why Yuuto made him stay in the goal."

<What are you going to do now, Yuuto? I hope you have an idea at least.> Lina really hopes that. She watches Nishigaki pass to Shuuya-chan, who advances into Seishou's half. <First goal, already?>

Kidokawa doesn't let up, pressuring Seishou's defense with quick passes. While slightly disappointed that Masato-chan didn't think of something more entertaining, she can't say it's a bad idea. The Mukata brothers and Shuuya-chan's teamwork is not bad, on the contrary, it's really fine. <How the Hell did you do that, Shuuya-chan? You got those three on your side... Impressive.>

"Kidokawa Seishuu's passes..." Yuu-kun notes, "you can't follow them at all..."

"No," Yuuma interrupts, "they really aren't that hard to follow. Haizaki-kun's inability to think clearly in this situation is what makes them seem so."

"What do you mean?" Sasuke barks, still not liking the taller boy; and because he sounds like he's superior to Kidokawa, or Shuuya-chan.

Nishikage-san is the one to answer. "It's a goalkeeper's job to watch their team's backs. You see things differently from there. Still, the difference between how complete their teams are is clear."

A smug smile tugging at her lips, Lina hums nonchalantly. "Maybe. For now, anyway."

"What will Haizaki-kun try to do? Don't you think that's the question we should be asking, don't you think so?" Yuuma smiles at Ina-chan.

Michinari-san - thankfully - interferes before Lina can. "He's going to do something rash. If not now, then during the second half."

"I agree," Anna-chan nods.

<A combined hissatsu...?> Lina tilts her head in slight confusion as Shuuya-chan calls out to the Mukata brothers. 

"What the..."

Anna-chan doesn't try to slap a hand over her mouth, nor does her elbow slam in Lina's ribs. <Fucking Hell...> she continues the phrase in her head. Because that's the exact way she feels, and it's pretty much the only emotions she feels radiating from her companions. Because the Mukata brothers use an incomplete version of the Triangle Z.

Lina is quick to note that it's stronger. The trajectory worries her, as it's not aimed toward the goal, but sky-high. And she thinks for a second that she might know where this is going.

"Shoot chain?" Ina-chan is the one to ask.

"I think so," Yuu-kun answers.

"No," surprisingly, it's Kirin-chan that corrects them. "It's an override hissatsu, like Rensa the Wall, right, Lin-nee?"

"Yeah," Lina breaths out, not entirely listening though to shock.

Lina feels like retching when the demon gets blasted in the net by the strength of the shot. Her baby cousin getting hurt didn't really sit well with her. Then again, that might just be her irrational (read: sleep-deprived) mind.

1-0 for Kidokawa Seishuu, scored by an override hissatsu with the same name as the one that got Raimon their second goal against Epsilon Kai.

{Hissatsu technique category: override/shoot chain. Element: fire. Number of players needed for creation: four. Speed: medium to above medium, stoppable. Damage: above medium. Optimal hissatsu category for stop: block, catch, counter shoot.}

Lina feels somewhat cold when the demon gets up and her analyzing comes to an abrupt halt. The demon's aura spikes when he aggressively passes the ball to Yuuto. While more than a little forceful, the playmaker simply intercepts it with his ankle.

Right now, the demon's aura reminds her of that bastard's. A dark purple with hints of midnight blue, blackish-grey and a blood red. It's a fucking nightmare to be around him when he's a bad mood.

"Gouenji-san is the coolest!" Sasuke cheers as Lina glances at him over Kirin-chan's head.

There are little stars in Ina-chan's eyes as he looks on the field. "The Mukata brothers were also really cool," Michinari-san points out. "That shoot was possible because of their strength."

The tiny forward looks offended at the mere suggestion. "Yup," Yuu-kun leans his elbows on his knees. "Half of that score belongs to the Mukata brothers, doesn't it?"

Sasuke immediately protests. "What match are you watching? All of that was 100% Gouenji-san!"

Lina huffs when Anna-chan cuts in before anyone else. "You'll have to be more specific," they all turn to her; Lina simply puffs knowing where she's going. "Not Gouenji Shuuya, Masato-kun is probably the one to come up with the basics of it."

"Masato-kun?" Tsukushi-chan asks.

"Yup," Lina titles her head then elaborates. "He's not Yuuto, but he's still a pretty good strategist and knows how hissatsu techniques work."

"Are they gonna do it again?" Ina-chan asks, a worried tone in his voice.

Lina looks back at the match just as the Mukata triplets fake a pass to Shuuya-chan. Then the three use a stronger Triangle Z - that's not really version 2 - and score the second goal. Lina almost finds herself laughing at how hilarious the demon's reaction is. He's shaking in anger but doesn't move to block.

"Okay," Lina gets up. "I'll see you guys after the match, I have something I need to take care of."

"Lin-nee?" Kirin-chan's doe eyes blink innocently at her.

Petting down his hair a bit, Lina leaves just as the whistle blows twice. The reason she just doesn't hack the demon's Eleven Band is because of the five fucking firewalls that Yuuto made Kou-chan put in it.

For some reason, it doesn't take her that long to get to the pitch. <Jirou's right. I walk too fucking fast. Four-hundred eighty to go, right?>

When Lina's close enough to Seishou's benches, the first thing she hears is the demon's voice:

"What the Hell are you thinking, Kidou!? Do you want us to lose this? Let me go back to being a forward right now!"

Lina doesn't hold back a scoff once she's within earshot, [bratty] is the best word to describe the demon's attitude. "Let go of the guy, Ryouhei."

At that, all of Seishou Gakuen's players turn to her and she sees Haruna-chan's eyes sparkle in recognition. Seiryuu also looks up from where he was hiding under his towel. Aggressively letting go of Yuuto's uniform, the demon turns to Lina and hisses like a wet cat. Teal eyes narrowed and hands crossed over her chest, Lina simply stares him down - which is weird because he's taller than her - before sighing. 

For some reason, people seem to think she's scary.

Lina continues talking over the hissing in a bored tone. "Of all fucking people, I really don't think Yuuto wants to lose. Or let you forward for that matter."

Lips stretched in a maniacal smile and eyes narrowed to slits, the demon hisses. "Don't fuck with me! I can't afford to lose in a place like this!"

"I've already taken the necessary steps toward victory," Yuuto speaks up from beside her.

"You're an idiot," Lina's blunt comment makes everyone wince, "but you have a brain, try using it for a change, Ryouhei," she sighs in exasperation. "Figure out why Yuuto put you there," she gestures to the blue uniform on the demon. "Do that, go back to being a forward. Easy."

<Not.>

Beside her, Yuuto nods. "Lin's right. If you don't figure it out, then even if I let you be a forward, we won't beat Gouenji."

"Hah!" The demon scoffs, eyes still crazed. "I won't lose to a guy like that!"

"Don't underestimate Gouenji!"

Lina blinks in surprised when the dread-haired boy raises his voice. "Easy there, Yuuto," she puts a hand on his - tensed - shoulder before turning to the demon. "What Yuuto means, is that you aren't fighting against Shuuya-chan. Not against a single player. You're playing all of Kidokawa Seishuu, and if you keep this shit up, all of Seishou Gakuen too."

Throughout her rant, Yuuto had been taking breaths to calm down. "If you tried to fight alone against every Kidokawa Seishuu member, I'm sure they won't even let Seishou make a single shoot."

"Sixty-four," Lina announces, taking her hand off the Kidou's shoulder to cross both of her arms behind her back; finger pads digging into her forearm out of anxiety.

She sighs in annoyance when Yuuto turns - cape fluttering mind you - and walks away. "Enough with the talk!" The demon rages, not that the playmaker even glances at him. "If you let me go forward, I'll turn this match around right away! Don't screw with me..."

Rolling her eyes, Lina smacks him on the back of his head. "Don't do anything _too_ stupid, Ryouhei," she gently squeezes his shoulder. "I hope you figure it out while the score can be turned around."

<Who the fuck am I kidding?> Lina snickers to herself while walking away. <We got killed by Zeus, during both halves. The only reason we won was because of Mamoru-chan figuring out Majin The Hand. Not to mention we got killed by Midori-chan like three hours after that.>

Instead of returning to her teammates - and former teammates - Lina sits on one side of the pitch. Outside of the instant area where she might get a soccer ball to the face. Not a nice experience. <Fucking penguins> she melancholically rubs the bridge of her nose. She sits down on the fake grass just as the whistle blows.

The second half starts with Seishou's kick-off, but she huffs when they lose the ball to Kidokawa pretty quick. Thanks to Shuuya-chan.

There's an amused chuckle from beside her as someone sits on the grass next to her. "Shuuya's pretty different from back then isn't he?"

Lina smiles, turning her head to the speaker. "Hello, Masato-chan. That he is."

A puff of annoyance from her friend. "I'm jealous of him. I haven't played in an official match since our first year. First! We're in our third!"

"Seishou Gakuen's completely on defense," they both turn back to the game at the announcer's voice.

The Mukata brothers make quick-passes with their teammates as they advance in Seishou's territory. Yuuto quickly blocks one of the Mukatas.

"What the fuck is he doing...?" 

Lina doesn't answer because she's asking herself the same thing. <Didn't I tell him to _not_ do anything _too_ stupid? This classifies as _too_ stupid, you moron.> She thinks when the demon runs from the goal, he steals the ball from between Yuuto and the Mukata. Before running towards Kidokawa's half.

"Fucking moron..." Lina sighs, eyes wide.

"What the Hell is he thinking?" Masato-chan asks her, jaw dropped. "He trying to pull an Endou?"

Shaking her head, she sighs again. "I haven't the faintest idea. But whatever it is, it's idiotic. _That's for fucking sure_."

She feels Masato-chan's eyes on her. "So, you figured this would happen."

Humming, Lina scoffs. "Who the Hell do you take me for? I just hoped that he'd chose option three."

"Option three being? Let me guess, he does this then understands why Kidou put him in the goal, right? Anyway," the Kidokawa player bumps their shoulders. "Right now, he doesn't have teammates, easy pray. So, it's basically twenty-one to one. Oh, look, he's cornered."

" _He's a fucking moron is what he,_ " Lina sneers at the demon's stupidity.

"Our team's link defense, and here comes Nishigaki-kun."

The midfielder is - as expected - right. Because while the demon was preoccupied with other players, Nishikage had started Spinning Cut. The defender leaps while doing a roundhouse kick. The blue energy that had gathered around his foot created that wide wall of blue flames. Nishigaki succeded to seal the ball from the demon.

{Hissatsu technique category: block. Element: wind. Number of players needed for creation: one. Speed: avoidable with a high-speed player, otherwise not. Damage: minimal, unless too close to the user (might get kicked in the process of stopping). Optimal hissatsu category for break-through/dodge: Shoot, shoot chain, dodge, pass.}

"Nishigaki got stronger too, huh?" It's a rhetoric question of course.

Masato-chan laughs, and Lina can picture the self-satisfied look on his face. "I made him do roundhouse kicks on a punching bag ever since the semi-finals of last year. He broke five."

"You seem very happy with yourself for that," Lina can't help the smirk that tilts her lips while looking at him. "Those things aren't cheap."

The midfielder rubs the back of his head while looking away with a pout. "I know that now."

She looks back at the game. Nishigaki passes to Shuuya-chan, who initiates Fire Tornado towards the empty goal. Lina huffs as Masato-chan's energy turns bright. <Never doubt the stubbornness of a guy that got raised by someone Ma and Aunty grew up with.>

Just as she thinks that, Seiryuu and Seishou's #3 and #4 jump in front of the shot, the official goalkeeper in front of the. Lina huffs, slightly impressed when they use the goalkeeper's chest like a shield. While they do manage to stop Fire Tornado, all four of them get blown in the net.

"Out of bounds?!" Lina can't say she doesn't enjoy the way Masato-chan sounds like he's having a mental breakdown.

She smirks, not taking her eyes off the game. "Seiryuu is more stubborn than he looks."

After Kidokawa Seishuu's corner, Lina feels like she should put a bit more faith in the fact that - maybe - the demon isn't a complete moron. And that Seishou is going to win. She does so when she sees the demon's head move from side to side as he watches the movements of the opposite team.

Lina's never going to admit - not in a thousand years or ten live times - that she feels pride swell up in her chest when the demon steals the ball from Shuuya-chan. <Bold, cousin. Bold, but smart.>

She still sweat-drops when the demon starts barking orders; still, it works out well enough for Seiryuu to decide to use Zone of Pentagram. [Beautifully awesome] had been the way Lina had described Zone of Pentagram when Seiryuu had perfected it.

The blue-haired captain jumps and the oh-so-pretty blue dome appears around him when he crosses his arms. When he lands, the dome expands, around both him and Mukata Masaru. The captain of Kidokawa doesn't stop his shoot - he looks like he's panicking, really - thankfully Zone of Pentagram redirects the ball out of bounds.

Any ball fired inside gets sent out of bounds. She chuckles while glancing at Masato-chan, who looks close to ripping off his hair in frustration. You can say what you will, but the Gouenji had pride.

Lina cheers while the demon gets to be a forward again, while Amano the goalkeeper.

"Now?! Why now?!" The white-haired playmaker rages beside her. "Like, right now?! Are you fucking with me?!" 

"You're gonna lose~" Lina sings, tone teasing as he glares at her. "They might not have Kidokawa's teamwork, but the demon might have just learned some."

Masato-chan scoffs, the look on his face reading 'as freaking if'. She just shrugs while Amano passes to Yuuto, who dribbles across the field. The demon runs beside him. And by the face the demon is making, Lina is certain the dreadlock-ed strategist is giving a lecture.

The two Seishou players separate to get past Kidokawa's defenses by making some pretty aggressive passes. When the demon gets the ball back, he advances. And this has to be one of those matches that Masato-chan can stop cursing.

The demon passes to Seishou's #9, a more than slightly crazed smile on his lips and a maniacal look in his multicolored eyes. #9 passes to 10 who back-passes to #8. Shuuya-chan marks the demon while his teammates gather to defend the goal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this chapter.   
> Also, I won't be posting on this story for a while. I'll be working on a Harry Potter x Inazuma Eleve (Ares & Orion) crossover story. Mostly because I was talking with RanmaruKirino3 and we somehow came up with that idea

**Author's Note:**

> More detailed scene and in-depth explication about Lin's accident, it's not really that graphic. But it's there.


End file.
